minor role
3
3.5
- noun
- /ˈmaɪnər roʊl/
:
papel menor
- To seal the deal as it were, we're also willing to offer you a minor role.
- plays a minor role
- only a minor role
- relatively minor role
And the malesthesia glomosa may play a small part, but it's a very minor role in this.
- And the malesthesia glomosa may play a small part, but it's a very minor role in this.
- And Audi's going to say, you know, it may seem that cost benefit analysis could have, at best, a minor role.
Examples
-
For instance, regionalism plays a minor role in Venezuelan elections.
Academic text (1993) -
However, public participation was limited in these cases to minor roles on panels that already had an official agenda.
Academic text (1993) -
I played a minor role, really.
-
In reading back through this, I notice how Mom seems to play such a minor role.
Fiction book (1997) -
The business community can no longer afford to play a minor role in planning the response to a pandemic.
Academic text (2005) -
Peter Burton has a minor role in Dr. No to give Bond his new weapon.
Blog text (10) -
As a trade union organization, Solidarity played a relatively minor role in the parliamentary elections of 4 June 1989.
Academic text (1998) -
A crow, in a brief shot familiar to Eisenstein buffs, plays a minor role.
Academic text (1992) -
The amendment has played a very minor role in the reconstruction of shoreline communities following Hurricane Hugo.
Academic text (1991) -
In 2001's Donnie Darko, McDonnell had a minor role as a suburban mom.
Synonyms
5
4.1
A small acting role with few lines in a film or TV show
4
6.5
A person who has a small role in a film or play
3
3.4
An actor who plays a small but important role in a film or play
1
8.8
A person who has a very small part in a play or film, often with no lines
Antonyms
How Important
Surface Forms
Morphology
Both constituents contribute directly to the meaning: 'minor' (not important/small) modifies 'role' (the part an actor plays), so a learner who knows both words can infer 'a small or less important part' without prior exposure. This is a straightforward, compositional adjective + noun combination and is mirrored in many other languages, making it immediately understandable to B1 learners.
Etymology
Minor role comes from the stage: minor means small and a role is the part an actor plays, so picture someone at the edge of the stage with only a few lines. That's why minor role means a 'small' or 'less important' part in a play, film, or situation.