“play it”

The following 4 entries include the term play it.

play it by ear

idiom

: to do something without special preparation

See the full definition

play it cool

idiom

: to act calm

See the full definition

play it safe

idiom

: to be careful and avoid risk or danger

See the full definition

play (it) smart

idiom

: to make good decisions

See the full definition

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of non sequitur

See Definitions and Examples »

Test Your Vocabulary

Challenging Standardized Test Words, Vol. 2

  • a pencil broken in half on top of a test answer sheet
  • The business’s new computer system proved not to be a panacea.
How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?

Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!

TAKE THE QUIZ
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.

Pick the best words!

PLAY
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
child-detective
Quiz: Spot More Misspelled Words Can you get all these questions write?