bit player

noun

1. an actor having a very small speaking part in a play, motion picture, etc.

Word History and Origins

Origin of bit player¹

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

Playing the basement-dwelling, unpredictable father to Leah Remini’s sharp-tongued New Yorker, Carrie Heffernan, Stiller had the opportunity to flex both his dramatic and comedic muscles, earning his place in the show’s ensemble instead of being relegated to a bit player.

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Rolls-Royce is a bit player in a market that has powerful and successful leaders, and that rival Pratt and Witney lost $8bn trying and failing to break into.

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But South Africa’s leader was nothing more than a bit player in this tableau, while the white Afrikaners under supposed threat of extermination didn’t even get speaking parts.

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Eberl said in the summer that Tel would feature more this campaign, but he has found himself in the role of a bit player.

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Having been just a bit player in his 1½ college seasons, Aday Mara moved to the forefront Tuesday night.

Read more on Los Angeles Times