spear carrier
Americannoun
-
a supernumerary in a theatrical or operatic production, as one of a group of soldiers or a member of a crowd; extra.
-
any minor member of a group, profession, political party, etc.; subordinate; underling.
Etymology
Origin of spear carrier
First recorded in 1950–55
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.
After brief theater experience as a spear carrier, he moved to California.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 7, 2022
He secured a job with the Royal Shakespeare Company at Stratford, where his first recorded role was as a spear carrier in a 1954 production of Othello.
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2020
Mr. Neumann had a small part — “a spear carrier or something,” his son said — and from then on was hooked on the theater.
From New York Times ● Dec. 6, 2012
Within six weeks I was performing as a spear carrier in 'Saint Joan' with Siobhan McKenna and rehearsing 'Hamlet.'
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 19, 2011
Stopping a super, he asked for Miss Luft’s dressing room; the super, wearing makeup and the costume of an Egyptian spear carrier, pointed.
From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
