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Glite Dictionary
left fielder

left fielder

7 3.5
Player who stands in left field in baseball or softball and catches balls
  • noun
  • /lɛft ˈfiːldər/
  • US
translation icon : jardinero izquierdo
  • The left fielder made an impressive catch during the game.
  • left fielder Gonzalez
  • left fielder Bonds
  • left fielder Luis

Examples

  • The former Red Sox icon was unveiled Wednesday night as the backup left fielder behind Ted Williams on the All-Fenway team.

    Blog text (11)

  • Left fielder Carlos Quentin is currently the oldest player in the Padres' everyday starting lineup.

    Blog text (19)

  • Well, they decided to trade him for a left fielder, so...

    Secret in Their Eyes (2015)

  • And it gets away from the left fielder.

    Home Run (2013)

  • Boys, meet your new left fielder.

    The Perfect Game (2009)

  • The left fielder could probably pick it up and gun him down at first before he got there.

    Blog text (18)

  • Sure, we could use a left fielder, and we could use another power bat from Texas.

    Blog text (13)

  • As of now, I would guess Duda is probably the starting left fielder.

    Blog text (27)

  • Number 14, left fielder, Jeff Wong.

    Bad News Bears (2005)

  • Consider, for a moment, the plight of Mets left fielder Jason Bay.

    Blog text (23)

Synonyms

baseball player
vsleft fielder
72 1.4

A person who plays baseball for a team or as a job

refers only to one specific playing position within that sport
ballplayer
vsleft fielder
  • US
54 3.0

A person who plays baseball, often as a professional

is the exact player who stands in a particular outfield spot
fielder
vsleft fielder
44 3.5

A player who catches or stops the ball in baseball and cricket

is specifically the player assigned to a named outfield position
outfielder
vsleft fielder
  • US
36 3.0

A player who stands in the outer part of the field and catches long hits

is the specific player assigned to one outfield side rather than any outfield role
left field
vsleft fielder
21 3.6

The part of the outfield on the left side in baseball and the player who plays there

refers to the player who occupies that specific position
leftfield
vsleft fielder
1 6.3

The area of the baseball outfield to the batter's left or the player there

is about the player who plays that defensive spot

Surface Forms

left fielder singular
left fielders plural

Morphology

left + fielder

The meaning 'the player who occupies the left field position' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'left' (the side/direction) with 'fielder' (a player who fields). This straightforward compositional pattern (side + role) is common in English and other languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can reliably infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Left fielder comes from baseball and softball: it names the player who stands in the left part of the field. Here left means the left side and fielder means a player in the field, so the phrase today means 'the player in left field'.