the world > action or operation > inaction > not doing > [noun] > one who takes no part in action > part or position of (2)
In plural (and occasionally in singular) with the, esp. in on (also from) the sidelines. In extended use: a position in which one is observing a…
figurative, with reference to a position from which one is observing a situation rather than directly involved in it. Frequently in plural, esp. in…