How to Use second-string in a Sentence
second-string
adjective-
But the meat was always second-string.
—Jennifer Stewart Kornegay, Southern Living, 30 Aug. 2025
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There won’t be any risk of rotation or second-string teams.
—Holly Shand, New York Times, 22 May 2026
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Javier Otero is back as the club’s second-string goalkeeper as well.
—Kyle Foley, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 Feb. 2026
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Their entire knockout route would be set depending on this, so to put out a second-string team came as a surprise.
—James Horncastle, New York Times, 26 June 2026
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For two straight seasons, Ballard has beaten out Marshall for the second-string job.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 24 Oct. 2025
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Dart consistently has worked with the second-string offense during training camp.
—Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 11 Aug. 2025
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Braxton Berrios has had a strong camp as a wide receiver getting reps with the first- and second-string offenses.
—Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 14 Aug. 2026
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The undrafted rookie, who runs as hard as any of the backs, saw more action in team drills, taking hand-offs with the second-string and third-string units.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 6 Aug. 2026
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And San Francisco would not have pulled it off if not for the play of a quarterback who entered the season second-string.
—Andrew Greif, NBC news, 3 Oct. 2025
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But Jonah Williams has earned second-string snaps during Citrus Bowl practices the past week.
—Danny Davis, Austin American Statesman, 29 Dec. 2025
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Albin gave second-string quarterback Grayson Loftis the 49ers’ final two drives.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 7 Sep. 2025
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Gabriel was drafted two rounds earlier than Sanders and naturally had the leg up in the competition for the second-string spot.
—Ted Nguyen, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
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None were afforded enough time on the pitch to really impress and, at this early stage of pre-season, the second-string players are largely filling gaps in the squad.
—Chris Waugh, New York Times, 25 July 2026
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Their second-string defense held Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos without a touchdown.
—Elliott Teaford, Oc Register, 8 Jan. 2026
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Tied at the time, Boston was outscored 13-2 with their second-string big on the floor and ended the quarter down 31-20.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 8 Apr. 2026
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Wilson was anointed the team's starter entering the season, but Dart earned the second-string role after a strong preseason performance.
—Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2025
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Crimson Tide second-string quarterback Austin Mack finished the game with 103 passing yards.
—Anthony Solorzano, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026
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But manager Ståle Solbakken played a second-string side for that match and made 10 changes to the team that beat Senegal 3-2.
—Ben Church, CNN Money, 30 June 2026
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Williams completed 8 of 12 passes for 86 yards while leading UM’s second-string offense to scores on two of three drives.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 7 Sep. 2025
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Rookie running back Ollie Gordon II may have gone from fourth-string running back to second-string in a matter of seven days.
—David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 17 Aug. 2025
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Westover transitioned to fullback last training camp but spent all of practice as the Patriots’ second-string tight end behind Henry.
—Doug Kyed, Boston Herald, 2 June 2026
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Garza was the Celtics’ second-string center for the first month of the season, but the team’s late-November shift toward smaller lineups pushed him out of the rotation.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 21 Dec. 2025
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The setback is a tough blow for Reichert, who appeared to be in line for early-season opportunities as Missouri’s second-string right guard.
—Zach Sweet, Kansas City Star, 24 Aug. 2025
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Miami also returned redshirt sophomore Emory Williams, who figures to be the second-string quarterback.
—Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 18 Aug. 2025
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Nick Zakelj, a second-string option, suffered an elbow injury Wednesday and did not practice Thursday.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2026
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Heck, even Emory Williams had a 10 yard carry in the fourth quarter during the one drive when UM put its second-string offense in to wrap up the game.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 14 Sep. 2025
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Sure, training camp always inflates the reputations of a receiver who can win a 50-50 ball against second-string cornerbacks.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 9 Aug. 2026
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Pickett, 27, spent 2025 as second-string quarterback for the Las Vegas Raiders.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 11 Mar. 2026
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Meanwhile, Jameis Winston and the rookie Jaxson Dart have been battling for the second-string spot throughout the preseason.
—Justin Grasso, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Aug. 2025
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Dart is currently the second-string behind Russell Wilson, but he was used in a few run-pass-option plays last week against the Dallas Cowboys.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 20 Sep. 2025
Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'second-string.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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