Standard Lemma guide

walk-on

noun · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈwɔːkɒn/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: W AO1 K AA2 N Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A student athlete who wants to try out for a college sports or athletic team without the benefit of a scholarship or having been recruited.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: hobbies, lifestyle, sports

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

An actor of a small (or "bit") part in a theatrical production or film, often without speaking lines.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: broadcasting, entertainment, film, lifestyle, media, television, theater

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Such a part in a play or film.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: attributive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

One who arrives and boards transport (such as a train or ferry) without having booked in advance.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

adjective

Meaning 5

not capable of or especially not involving speech or spoken lines

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • had a nonspeaking role in the play

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: nonspeaking

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

plays a small part in a dramatic production

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: actor, histrion, player, thespian, role player

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

39 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: статист (statist) — actor with a small part
  • Chinese Cantonese: 茄哩啡 (ke1 le1 fe1) — actor with a small part
  • Chinese Mandarin: 群眾演員 /群众演员 (qúnzhòng yǎnyuán) — actor with a small part
  • Dutch: figurant — actor with a small part
  • Dutch: nevenfiguur — actor with a small part
  • Finnish: sivuosan esittäjä — actor with a small part
  • French: figurant — actor with a small part
  • French: comparse — actor with a small part
  • German: Statist — actor with a small part
  • German: Statistin — actor with a small part
  • German: Komparse — actor with a small part
  • Hebrew: נִצָּב (nitzáv) — actor with a small part
  • Hungarian: statiszta — actor with a small part
  • Irish: aisteoir breise — actor with a small part
  • Irish: aisteoir mionpháirteanna — actor with a small part
  • Italian: figurante — actor with a small part
  • Norwegian: statist — actor with a small part
  • Polish: statysta — actor with a small part
  • Polish: statystka — actor with a small part
  • Portuguese: figurante — actor with a small part
  • Romanian: figurant — actor with a small part
  • Romanian: figurantă — actor with a small part
  • Russian: стати́ст (statíst) — actor with a small part
  • Russian: стати́стка (statístka) — actor with a small part
  • Serbo-Croatian: statist — actor with a small part
  • Spanish: figurante — actor with a small part
  • Spanish: comparsa — actor with a small part
  • Swedish: statist — actor with a small part
  • Thai: ตัวประกอบ (dtuua-bprà-gɔ̀ɔp) — actor with a small part
  • Turkish: figüran — actor with a small part
  • Ukrainian: стати́ст (statýst) — actor with a small part
  • Ukrainian: стати́стка (statýstka) — actor with a small part
  • Dutch: nevenrol — small part in a play or film
  • Finnish: sivuosa — small part in a play or film
  • French: figuration — small part in a play or film
  • Hungarian: statisztaszerep — small part in a play or film
  • Italian: figurazione — small part in a play or film
  • Polish: rola epizodyczna — small part in a play or film
  • Russian: нема́я роль (nemája rolʹ) — small part in a play or film
Real reading context

walk-on in complete knowledge articles