benchwarmer

[bench-wawr-mer] / ˈbɛntʃˌwɔr mər /

NOUN

second fiddle

Synonyms

WEAK

back seat low man on totem pole reserves second banana second string second stringer second team secondary role understudy

NOUN

utility player

Synonyms

WEAK

backup bench bench jockey jack-of-all-trades replacement second string secondary sub substitute succedaneum

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The greatest moment by a Dodger benchwarmer in baseball history, a guy so embedded in the landscape of Los Angeles sports that he will be forever known simply by two abbreviated versions of his name...

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 27, 2025

Card, whose Texas career pinballed from starter to benchwarmer only to see Sarkisian court another hotshot like Ewers, opted to stay even though he is more than a year away from graduation.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 23, 2022

Brown, the 15th overall pick in 2018, fell out of the Wizards’ rotation this season and Wagner’s role was inconsistent — going from benchwarmer to starter to benchwarmer again.

From Washington Times • Mar. 25, 2021

Imagine the kinds of arguments teams will have after a benchwarmer goes rogue and loses a challenge.

From Slate • Aug. 1, 2019

And yet here he is, a third- string benchwarmer kind of guy, holding the ball for the great Erik Fisher.

From "Tangerine" by Edward Bloor

benchwarmer

Example Sentences

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