as in substitutes
a person or thing that takes the place of another
the business owners brought in a pinch hitter until a permanent manager could be hired
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pinch hitters
The Jays used four pinch hitters and defensive substitutions.
—
Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 22 Sep. 2025
The club went silently in the bottom of the ninth, with pinch hitters Carlos Narvaez, Rob Refsnyder and Nick Sogard going down 1-2-3.
—Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 18 Sep. 2025
There’s also pressure on the bench because teammates, like pinch hitters, never know when they may be subbed in.
—Candace Oehler, Forbes.com, 27 Aug. 2025
Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 22 Sep. 2025
The club went silently in the bottom of the ninth, with pinch hitters Carlos Narvaez, Rob Refsnyder and Nick Sogard going down 1-2-3.
—Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 18 Sep. 2025
There’s also pressure on the bench because teammates, like pinch hitters, never know when they may be subbed in.
—Candace Oehler, Forbes.com, 27 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pinch hitters
Noun
-
Use them as meat substitutes (lentil chili, bean burger).—
Brittany Poulson,
Verywell Health,
14 Oct. 2025
-
There are no substitutes named, nor a coach.—
Michael Walker,
New York Times,
11 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The need for replacements was extreme and exacerbated as battle casualties in the European theater increased from 31,617 in October 1944 to 77,726 in December and non-battle casualties from 28,364 to 56,695.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
14 Oct. 2025
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Following their performances as Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene in The Passion of the Christ (2004), Deadline can confirm that Jim Caviezel and Monica Bellucci will not reprise their role in the sequel, which is currently casting their replacements in Rome.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
11 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Lonergan has been in his fair share of tussles for minutes between the sticks and thinks, in a lot of cases, goalkeepers should be treated like outfield players, where in-form backups retain their starts.—
Beren Cross,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
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The former Portland Trail Blazers starter poured in 21 points in 25 minutes Sunday night against Cleveland’s backups, going 6-for-9 from 3-point range.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
16 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pinch hitters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pinch%20hitters. Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.
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