utility player
- noun
- /juːˈtɪləti ˈpleɪər/
:
jugador polivalente
- As a utility player in the company, he is often called upon to assist with various projects across different departments.
Examples
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Also, please remember that Walker was a bust, but this 'development team' brought out his skills (I'd imagine calling him a utility player lit a fire under his butt?).
Blog text (33) -
In her role at the nonprofit, she has become a utility player, handling everything from marketing to event planning.
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The new employee proved to be a valuable utility player, adapting quickly to the needs of multiple teams.
How Versatile
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'utility' (usefulness, versatility) with 'player' (a person taking part or performing a role): a person who is useful across different roles. This adj+noun composition follows regular English patterns and has clear cross-linguistic analogues (e.g. 'jugador polivalente', 'polyvalent player'), so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words will very likely infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Utility player outside sports comes from the same image: the word utility means a useful tool. Think of a small tool with many blades that can do many jobs, so the phrase means 'someone who can do several different tasks' for a team.