second-string

1. 1.

   being a replacement or substitute for a regular member of a team

   “a second-string pitcher”

   Similarsecondary

Questions about second-string

What does second-string mean?

second-string means "being a replacement or substitute for a regular member of a team".

How many syllables are in second-string?

second-string has 3 syllables and divides as se-cond--string under the regular spelling rules. It is not in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, so that comes from how the word is written rather than from a recorded pronunciation, and no stress or phonetic transcription is claimed for it.

Is second-string a common word?

second-string is banded "Rare" — specialist or archaic — most readers will not have met it. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.