surrogate

Vocabulary Word

Definition

'Surrogate' refers to something or someone who steps in to take the place of another. It is often used when there's a need, or a person cannot do it for themselves, so a surrogate fills in or acts for them.

Examples in Different Contexts

In literature, a 'surrogate' character might represent the author's voice or views. A literary critic might observe, 'The protagonist, in many ways, acts as a surrogate for the author's own experiences and opinions.'

Practice Scenarios

Tech

Scenario:

We need a way to populate the database with unique identifiers for tracking. Natural keys aren't working well.

Response:

We could consider implementing surrogate keys to easily track unique records in the database.

Creative

Scenario:

The main character should be multidimensional and striking. They need to voice our experiences as immigrant authors in a relatable way.

Response:

Sure, I can write the protagonist as a surrogate character that embodies our experiences as immigrant authors.