straight man
15
7.5
- noun
- /ˈstreɪt mæn/
:
hombre serio
- In their comedy duo, he always played the straight man, delivering serious lines to set up the jokes.
The thing that really astonishes me also is you are the straight man.
- The thing that really astonishes me also is you are the straight man.
- You know, he's, I'm sorry to pick on you, you're designated straight man for tonight.
Examples
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Biden did his job, which was to play the straight man.
Blog text (11) -
The boss plays straight man as she fires off puns and non sequiturs.
Academic text (2007) -
You would be in my act as a straight man."
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I was not a good straight man.
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Can you play the straight man?
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You had me talking like a straight man.
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No straight man looks that good.
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You do the straight man and then I'll do...
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Promise me that wherever I go, you will come too, and I can be your straight man, just like here.
Blog text (33) -
You played straight man to a chimpanzee.
Antonyms
How Comic
- Informal
37
3.0
145
2.5
- Jargon
15
7.5
3
3.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
The parts 'straight' (serious/conventional) + 'man' (male person) give a clear clue that this refers to a serious person, but the specific theatrical role of a performer who sets up jokes for a comedian is a specialized, culture-specific use that is not fully derivable from the constituents. Therefore a B1 learner might guess a literal 'serious man' but would not reliably infer the comedy-foil meaning without prior exposure.
Etymology
Straight man comes from old stage comedy duos where one performer stayed serious; the words straight (not silly) and man (person) show his simple role. By staying calm and normal, the straight man 'sets up jokes' so the comedian looks funnier, which is why it means 'a serious performer who prepares the jokes for the comedian'.