All 8 Uses of
inferior
in
The Iliad by Homer - (translated by: Edward)
- 'Tis shame indeed that future days should hear
How such a force as ours, so great, so brave,
Hath thus been baffled, fighting, as we do,
'Gainst numbers far inferior to our own,
And see no end of all our warlike toil.†Chpt 1.2inferior = (adjective) of low quality, or of lower quality or rank than something else OR (more rarely as a noun) a person of lower rank or status
- In the front rank, with chariot and with horse,
He plac'd the car-borne warriors; in the rear,
Num'rous and brave, a cloud of infantry,
Compactly mass'd, to stem the tide of war,
Between the two he plac'd th' inferior troops,
That e'en against their will they needs must fight.†Chpt 1.4
- "Friends, Grecians all, ye who excel in war,
And ye of mod'rate or inferior strength,
Though all are not with equal pow'rs endued,
Yet here is work for all!†Chpt 2.12
- E'en man, though mortal, and inferior far
To us in wisdom, might so much effect
Against his fellow-man; then how should I,
By double title chief of Goddesses,
First by my birth, and next because thy wife
I boast me, thine, o'er all the Gods supreme,
Not work my vengeance on the Trojan race?†Chpt 2.18
- I know thee strong and valiant; and I know
Myself to thee inferior; but th' event
Is with the Gods; and I, if such their will,
The weaker, with my spear may reach thy life:
My point too hath, ere now, its sharpness prov'd.†Chpt 2.20
- Now, since my folly hath the people slain,
I well might blush to meet the Trojan men,
And long-rob'd dames of Troy, lest some might say,
To me inferior far, 'This woful loss
To Hector's blind self-confidence we owe.'†Chpt 2.22
- Another, with inferior horses far,
But better skill'd, still fixing on the goal
His eye, turns closely round, nor overlooks
The moment when to draw the rein; but holds
His steady course, and on the leader waits.†Chpt 2.23
- thou hast impugn'd my skill,
And sham'd my horses, who hast brought thine own,
Inferior far, before them to the goal.†Chpt 2.23 *
Definitions:
-
(1)
(inferior) of low quality, or of lower quality or rank than something else -- sometimes used as a noun to refer to a person of lower rank or status
-
(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
Less commonly, specialized senses include:- anatomy and botany -- a lower position on a body or plant (or pointed downward)
- typography -- a character that drops beneath a printing line (such as with subscript)
- astronomy -- having an orbit relative to the sun that is lower than earth's (making Mercury and Venus inferior planets)