play second fiddle

present singular third person plays second fiddle · participle present playing second fiddle · participle past played second fiddle · past played second fiddle

1. idiomaticintransitiveTo play a subsidiary or subordinate role to someone or something else.

   She had been mistress of the farm so long that it would be hard for her to play second fiddle, but give her time and she'd be as good as new butter and as nice as ninepence, he said.

   1913, Ethel Carnie, Miss Nobody, page 68

   1 more example

   Christmas queen Mary Berry's aubergine five-nut roast, from her Christmas Collection, is, as the name suggests, rather more focused on the nut side of things. Breadcrumbs play second fiddle to a medley of almonds, Brazils, chestnuts, pine nuts and pistachios which, although tangy with lemon juice and garlic, is outrageously dense. A single slice of this could leave you supine in front of the Queen's speech without even the wherewithal to reach for the remote control.

   2011 December 15, Felicity Cloake, “How to cook the perfect nut roast”, in Guardian