spear carrier
Americannoun
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a supernumerary in a theatrical or operatic production, as one of a group of soldiers or a member of a crowd; extra.
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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.
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
The Mets, it seems, have traded away a fellow who went from a hard-nosed, error-prone spear carrier into a rough approximation of George Brett.
From Washington Post • Jun. 30, 2016
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
He made additional money as an extra in the Metropolitan Opera chorus, where he was a spear carrier who was told never to sing.
From New York Times • Dec. 27, 2010
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.
