subcelebrity en · NOUN
Etymology
From sub- + celebrity.
Meanings
-
(uncountable) The state or quality of being somewhat known but not enough to be considered truly famous.
Himself almost unknown, Gay yet held a curious subcelebrity with not a few men who had won distinction in widely diverging lines.
1908 August, Eugene Manlove Rhodes, “The Torch”, in Out West:
-
(countable) A person who is somewhat known but not famous enough to be considered a true celebrity.
So Angela was relegated to the netherworld of D.C. subcelebrities — not quite interesting enough to be famous but just famous enough to be interesting.
1912, Beth Harbison, When in Doubt, Add Butter, St. Martin's Press, published 2012, →ISBN, page 62:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| subcelebrities | Number=Plur | lexicographic |