How to Use second fiddle in a Sentence

second fiddle

noun

• So why, then, does the movie treat her as second fiddle?
  — Alissa Wilkinson, Vox, 23 Aug. 2018
• Back in the 1930s, the heyday of the fur industry, mink played second fiddle to the long-haired furs.
  — John Schandelmeier, Anchorage Daily News, 18 Jan. 2020
• The nature of the job All vice presidents play second fiddle to the top of the ticket, as that's the nature of the job.
  — Ron Elving, NPR, 30 Mar. 2024
• While Williams has played second fiddle to Addison much of the season, he’s still been one of the top receivers in the Pac-12.
  — Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2022
• After have a very good season, one of the most over-achieving teams in the NBA has to play second fiddle in their own city.
  — latimes.com, 27 June 2019
• Even Trump plays second fiddle to the Iron Bowl rivalry.
  — Joseph Goodman | [e-mail], al, 6 Nov. 2019
• The business model is second fiddle to the safety of running it right.
  — John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2019
• Does Jadeveon Clowney just not want to play second fiddle to Myles Garrett?
  — Dan Labbe, cleveland, 23 June 2020
• The first few years were spent relearning the ropes and playing second fiddle to teams like Red Bull Racing.
  — Jonathan M. Gitlin, Ars Technica, 12 Sep. 2017
• Indeed, at Philipp Plein, the clothing played a distant second fiddle to the music.
  — Adam Wray, Billboard, 10 Oct. 2017
• Brad Pitt playing second fiddle to a charred oak Leo DiCaprio, all the while subtly stealing the show.
  — Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 28 May 2021
• Ethereum plays second fiddle to bitcoin and is lagging it.
  — Clem Chambers, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024
• While her pages are eye-catching, they aren’t overly designed where the content plays second fiddle to the look.
  — Dallas News, 4 May 2021
• While the crispy, crunchy croquette of pig’s head is the ostensible star of this course, the brothy butter beans here play second fiddle to no one.
  — Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 29 Dec. 2022
• But on this night Brady played second fiddle to Foles despite throwing for a playoff record 505 yards.
  — USA TODAY, 5 Feb. 2018
• As Madrid struggled to perform in the league, few took notice of the young Spaniard, who was stuck playing second fiddle for most of the campaign to Isco.
  — SI.com, 28 June 2018
• Maybe that would even work, but the problem is that Witten has never played second fiddle to anyone.
  — Kevin Sherrington, Dallas News, 28 Feb. 2020
• Brooke feeling jealous or second fiddle to a fake celebrity doesn’t have the same power.
  — Danielle Turchiano, Variety, 9 Sep. 2021
• Crime and the green belt are mentioned in his literature, but these play second fiddle.
  — The Economist, 7 Nov. 2019
• But Toni and Seb’s romance feels inevitable, and thereby, second fiddle to the excitement of the band’s journey.
  — Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 2 June 2021
• Even in the Midwest, where the thin-crusted, square-cut pizzas originated, tavern pies tend to play second fiddle to the deep dish and pan pies of the world.
  — Michael Russell, oregonlive, 25 Mar. 2020
• Often, the romance plays second fiddle to the central mystery and Patience’s own journey to make peace with herself in spite of the world around her.
  — Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 30 June 2020
• Those Wildcats were playing second fiddle to state behemoth Allen and might just find themselves in the same role now, but with the Dragons.
  — Stephen English, star-telegram, 2 Feb. 2018
• Mond is now playing second fiddle to Nick Starkel, who lit up New Mexico to solidify his spot at the top of the depth chart.
  — Alex Martin Smith, ajc, 15 Nov. 2017
• The Hubble Telescope, which had its own dramatic reveal in the 1990s, is now second fiddle.
  — Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 12 July 2022
• But even this richly atmospheric setting played second fiddle (so to speak) to the clothes.
  — Nicole Phelps, Vogue, 11 Dec. 2023
• Often playing second fiddle to apples, pears are a fall fruit deserving of the spotlight in their own right.
  — Aaron Hutcherson, Washington Post, 3 Oct. 2022
• The supporting actors are all fine and all playing second fiddle to Swank, like their characters are to Eileen.
  — Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Oct. 2022
• The shows, though, almost play second fiddle to the arsenal of musical options on board.
  — Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel, 19 July 2024
• Her subtleties are forced to play second fiddle to Law's (enjoyable) scenery-chewing.
  — Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 8 Sep. 2024

Last Updated: 21 Dec 2024