play out

verb

played out; playing out; plays out

transitive verb

1

a

: to perform to the end

play out a role

b

: use up, finish

play out the season

2

: unreel, unfold

… played out a length of line.

—Gordon Webber

intransitive verb

1

: to become spent or exhausted

a style that has played out

2

: develop, unfold

see how things play out

Synonyms of play out

• spend
• consume
• drain
• exhaust
• draw down
• run out of
• use up
• reduce
• absorb
• use

Examples of play out in a Sentence

we've finally played out the leftovers from that huge holiday meal

Recent Examples on the Web

The Penn State quarterback steps into an immediate competition with Will Howard that could play out over a number of years. —Mike Defabo, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2026

The entire tenor of the match was nearly much different for the second half, as SDFC came out after intermission and just moments in, executed a set piece that played out perfectly — if not for VAR. —Ryan Finley, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Apr. 2026

And that played out, unfortunately, in beating myself up. —Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 26 Apr. 2026

The contradiction is already playing out. —Haley Busch, The Orlando Sentinel, 26 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Rhymes for play out

• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout
• checkout
• closeout
• cutout
• devout
• dropout

Kids Definition

play out

verb

1

: to perform to the end

2

a

: to use up or finish

b

: to become exhausted : tire

3

: unreel, unfold