What is a strap hanger

Page URL:

https://www.etymonline.com/word/strap-hanger

HTML Link:

<a href="https://www.etymonline.com/word/strap-hanger">Etymology of strap-hanger by etymonline</a>

APA style:

Harper, D. (n.d.). Etymology of strap-hanger. Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved $(datetime), from https://www.etymonline.com/word/strap-hanger

Chicago style:

Harper Douglas, “Etymology of strap-hanger,” Online Etymology Dictionary, accessed $(datetime), https://www.etymonline.com/word/strap-hanger.

MLA style:

Harper, Douglas. “Etymology of strap-hanger.” Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com/word/strap-hanger. Accessed $(datetimeMla).

IEEE style:

D. Harper. “Etymology of strap-hanger.” Online Etymology Dictionary. https://www.etymonline.com/word/strap-hanger (accessed $(datetime)).

"Straphanger" seems to have a different, and negative connotation in current US military parlance. Since this is a militarily-oriented movie, it is probably the definition that applies.

In an article unrelated to Zero Dark Thirty, I found a reference to strap hangers.

"We have a saying in the SEAL Teams about the 90-10 rule. It goes: 90% of the guys that make it through Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training are solid Operators and go on to do great things. The other 10% are constantly bringing the community and their team down. We are always trying to cull the 10% out of the herd. In the military these guys are commonly referred to as “strap hangers”....grabbing at the straps of the good men that participated in this operation."

I found another reference in a book review titled The Poetry of Military Vernacular: Randy Brown’s “Welcome to FOB Haiku” that defines "straphanger" as deadweight.

So it means something like a hanger-on person who does not productively contribute to the mission, but who takes credit for it anyway.

I have never heard this use of this expression before, nor have I seen Zero Dark Thirty, but this seems to fit, as even the context implies a negative connotation.

One who uses public transportation.

One who grips a hanging strap or similar device for support while riding as a passenger on a bus or subway.

(informal) A standing passenger, as on a crowded bus or subway car.

Also found in: Thesaurus, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.

(străp′hăng′ər)

1. One who grips a hanging strap or similar device for support while riding as a passenger on a bus or subway.

2. One who uses public transportation.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

(ˈstræpˌhæŋə)

informal a passenger in a bus, train, etc, who has to travel standing, esp by holding onto a strap

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

(ˈstræpˌhæŋ ər)

1. a standing passenger in a bus or subway train who holds onto a strap or other support suspended from above.

2. a commuter using public transportation.

Noun	1.	straphanger - a commuter who uses public transportation commuter - someone who travels regularly from home in a suburb to work in a city
	2.	straphanger - a standing subway or bus passenger who grips a hanging strap for support passenger, rider - a traveler riding in a vehicle (a boat or bus or car or plane or train etc) who is not operating it

[ˈstræpˌhæŋəʳ] n → chi viaggia in piedi (su mezzi pubblici reggendosi a un sostegno)

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

Want to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, or visit the webmaster's page for free fun content.

Link to this page:

commuter
passenger
rider
strap
strap-hanger

He had brought his newspaper along, and hunched in his raincoat, he worked at his crossword puzzle doggedly, trying to pay no attention to the straphanger in front of him whose elbows jabbed continually into the paper.

On our next visit, three years later (Lynnika was living in Yamagata with Alex by then), on our way by bus to the temple district of Kyoto, a straphanger told me that when he died he would be the Buddha.

Each is customized to its audience, whether cliff dweller or suburbanite, straphanger or long-distance commuter, office worker or stay-at-home morn.

Although the Daily News caters to the blue-collar straphanger living inside the city, surely many on the Main Line were secretly slipping 60 cents into an honor box to get the inside scoop.

During my visit one unfortunate "straphanger" or commuter was pushed on to the tracks by a vagrant just as the train came in - not a pretty sight.

Look up straphanger in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Straphanger may mean:

Straphanger (specifically), a standing passenger on a subway or bus
Straphanger (more generally), a commuter who uses public transportation

Straphanger, a free rider who benefits from the actions and exertions of someone else, with no efforts of their own
Straphangers Campaign, a New York City-based transit interest group
The Straphanger, a 1922 comedy short film directed by Fred Fishback
The Straphanger Saloon, a saloon in Hackensack, New Jersey
Straphanger, an experienced United States Army airborne paratrooper which assists parachute jumps by being on standby in the aircraft.

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Straphanger.
If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Straphanger_(disambiguation)&oldid=1048780992"