presiding as a judge in a court
substituted from a sports event, or waiting to be brought on as a substitute
Source: en.wiktionary.orgWe must reject dictatorship in whatever form it takes - and especially when it rears its head in our own midst on the bench. Alan Keyes
I don't want to be a passenger sitting on the bench not doing much, even in my older years. Frank Lampard
I've been in the league 12 years. To sit on the bench and complain about the way things were, that doesn't get anything done. I don't know. I'm playing for a championship and trying to make the playoffs. My effort has never changed. Chris Webber
I was always the class clown and got kicked out of class at least once a day for just being a goofball. Not suspended or anything, just sit outside and look at the tree on the bench. I got benched a lot. You keep one foot on the bench and try to get as far away as possible. Damon Wayans, Jr.
If the guys on the bench were as good as the guys you have out there, they'd be out there in first place. Frank Robinson
And the problem is once you get into this campaign business and begin to have a lot of money, then the person on the bench begins to think - what's going to happen if I decide the case this way or that way? Stephen Breyer