utility player

British

noun

sport a player who is capable of playing competently in any of several positions

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

Frimpong was signed as a utility player, not a defender.

From BBC • Oct. 21, 2025

“I think we won this series because we pitched really well,” utility player Kiké Hernández said.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 10, 2025

He’ll have to have another one of those talks Wednesday before activating utility player Tommy Edman from the injury list.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 9, 2025

With Kim, Edman and Kiké Hernández, another utility player, all out with injuries, Roberts has not had the usual versatility he has enjoyed in fielding a lineup.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 5, 2025

Meanwhile, Kristen Baldwin asks, “How is it possible that Heidi Gardner, an indispensable utility player for the past eight seasons of ‘SNL,’ has never been nominated for an Emmy?”

From Los Angeles Times • May 23, 2025

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023