dejar mucho que desear
verbCEFR B2
What does “dejar mucho que desear” mean in English?
to leave much to be desired, to be far from satisfactory
to leave much to be desired, to be far from satisfactory (polite but firm criticism; mucho is the standard quantifier)
Example sentences
La atención al cliente dejó mucho que desear: nadie respondió a nuestra consulta en más de una semana.
The customer service left much to be desired: nobody responded to our query in over a week.
La calidad de los materiales deja bastante que desear para el precio que se cobra.
The quality of the materials leaves quite a lot to be desired given the price charged.
Su presentación dejó mucho que desear en términos de estructura y claridad argumentativa.
His presentation left much to be desired in terms of structure and argumentative clarity.
How to use it
Dejar mucho que desear means 'to leave much to be desired', 'to be far from satisfactory'. It is a polite but firm register of criticism — stronger than ser mejorable (could be improved) but less direct than ser un fracaso. Construction: dejar mucho que desear (intransitive). Subject is always the thing being criticised. Can be softened: 'deja bastante que desear' or intensified: 'deja muchísimo que desear'. Very common in reviews, evaluations, and formal complaints.
Common mistake
The phrase is fixed in its quantifier: mucho/bastante/todo que desear. Don't substitute *dejar poco que desear (which means the opposite: leaving little room for improvement = being excellent). In English 'to leave something to be desired' without the much is vaguer — the Spanish phrase with mucho is a stronger criticism.