I want a one or two word title for a character who is included in a group only because he is their "ticket" to get where they want to go. "Ticket" is what I'm thinking now but would love another option. Basically, where the other two are trying to go they can't get through without his permission.
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2Context will be important here - is it literally someone who can take the group somewhere, get them in somewhere, generally has something the group needs, or something else? English has lots of names for this person.– Kristina LopezOct 24, 2013 at 15:14
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This person controls access to where the group needs to pass through to get to where they want to go– Cynthia VesselOct 24, 2013 at 15:18
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1Sometimes sponsor may work. Also patron, and perhaps host. All of these are neutral and do not convey a mercenary approach by the beneficiaries.– bibOct 24, 2013 at 16:27
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.........way in– Edwin AshworthOct 24, 2013 at 21:34
4 Answers
If the word ticket is needed than surely you are looking for meal ticket.
Informal: someone upon whom one is dependent for one's income or livelihood: selfish children who look upon their father only as a meal ticket.
I think entry ticket, passport or key would all be ideal for the situation you describe, e.g.:
Geoffrey is our entry ticket to the control centre.
She's our passport to the secret lair.
He's our key to getting in.
One possibility is the phrase entry token. It denotes an entry pass or voucher. At the same time, token provides a suggestion of “included because we had to”.
Consider safe-conduct.
An official document or an escort assuring unmolested passage, as through enemy territory.