What does handlanger mean?
Handlanger means (South Africa) An unskilled assistant to an artisan..
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/ˈhændˌlæŋə/ · noun
(South Africa) An unskilled assistant to an artisan..
[…] building himself brick by brick, with his wife as his only handlanger.
[E]very political leader has a handlanger. Like a toddler with a security blanket, the political handlanger is a necessary sop and sponge for all the tension that goes with the job. And there is nothing either disreputable or degrading about the role. Politics can be spiteful and demanding; the handlanger is the trusted confidant, the one person whom the leader can sound out, seek counsel from and trust.
The time for talk truly is over now. The ANC will have to do the necessary, find its backbone and rein in [Jacob] Zuma, his cronies and their handlangers to avert an economic crisis happening on its watch.
Use handlanger when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.
Handlanger means (South Africa) An unskilled assistant to an artisan..
The closest synonym depends on the sentence and intended sense.
The opposite depends on the specific sense.
[…] building himself brick by brick, with his wife as his only handlanger.
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