From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishunderlingun‧der‧ling /ˈʌndəlɪŋ $ -ər-/ noun [countable] LOW POSITION OR RANKan insulting word for someone who has a low rank – often used humorously
Examples from the Corpus
underling• Obedience depended on respect, and how would an underling respect you if he thought you were no different from him?• Until the opening of the Marlborough galleries had tended to treat artists in a patronising way, as underlings.• For two decades Gao Yang would serve as one of his commune underlings.• He wasn't prepared to waste valuable time on mere underlings like us.• They could well be given to an officer's deputy or underling, assuring him of promotion when the time came.• Beyond this opened a small glass-sided cubicle from which a senior clerk could watch for frivolity among the underlings.• He had been running a six-person division when Spindler asked him to cut out two underlings.Origin underling (1100-1200) under + -ling 