Crossword Clue: Background film performer
Here's the answer to the Background film performer crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: EXTRA
The answer to "Background film performer" is EXTRA. Extra runs 5 letters — 2 vowels and 3 consonants — opening with E and closing on A. In a grid it fills a 5-square slot whose letters are each shared with a crossing word, so the intersections do a lot of the heavy lifting when the clue itself is tough.
Origin & meaning
An extra is a background performer who appears in a film without speaking lines, filling out crowds and scenes. Extras help create a realistic atmosphere in movies.
Common usage
You'll see EXTRA in grids regularly — its 5-letter, 2 vowels shape is exactly what setters need to bridge trickier entries. When one intersecting letter is already in place, especially the E or A, EXTRA tends to fall fast.
Crossword trivia
Short answers like EXTRA are the connective tissue of a crossword. You'll meet EXTRA again and again, and recognizing it instantly is one of the quiet skills that separates fast solvers from slow ones.
Stuck on this clue?
The fastest way past a stubborn clue like this one is the grid itself: pencil in the easy crossing answers first, and EXTRA will often be the only word that fits the letters you already have.
This clue in different puzzles
Setters vary how they clue EXTRA — sometimes with a straight dictionary definition, sometimes with wordplay, a pun, or a fill-in-the-blank — but the answer itself stays the same. Learning to spot the answer behind the disguise is a core crossword skill.
Example sentences
- "Once the E was confirmed by the crossing word, EXTRA was the only entry that fit."
- "A 5-letter slot and a clue like 'Background film performer'? That's EXTRA nine times out of ten."
- "I second-guessed it, but the crossing answers confirmed EXTRA was right."