Meaning & use
pinch hitter
A baseball player who bats in place of the scheduled hitter, or anyone who steps in as a substitute.
See it in a sentence
The coach sent in a pinch hitter to bat for the injured shortstop.
When the main speaker got sick, her assistant acted as a pinch hitter for the presentation.
A note on using this word
Originally a baseball term, pinch hitter is now widely used informally for anyone called in to replace someone at short notice.
Words with a similar meaning
substitutestand-in
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
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