variants
or less commonly play-off
1
: a final contest, series of contests, or period of play to determine the winner between contestants or teams that have tied
a golf tournament decided by an 18-hole playoff
a sudden-death playoff
2
: a series of contests played after the end of the regular season to determine a championship
—usually plural except when used before another noun
Will you watch the playoffs?
got tickets to a playoff game
played off; playing off; plays off
1
a
: to set in opposition for one's own gain
b
: to set in contrast
2
: to complete the playing of (an interrupted contest)
3
: to break (a tie) by a playoff
Examples of playoff in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 14 Apr. 2025
But a road loss to Bulls before that was a critical defeat that has Miami now needing two straight play-in wins to extend its season into the proper playoffs.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 13 Apr. 2025
David John Chávez, Mercury News, 15 Apr. 2025
City were played off the pitch for the vast majority of a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Bournemouth on November 2, the first league defeat of a bad run that lasted three to four months and is arguably not yet over.
—Sam Lee, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for playoff
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Noun
Although the coach did not want to formally rule Ball out of either game, Donovan said the Bulls are currently focused on attempting to return Ball to the rotation in the playoffs if the team is able to advance.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 14 Apr. 2025
But a road loss to Bulls before that was a critical defeat that has Miami now needing two straight play-in wins to extend its season into the proper playoffs.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 13 Apr. 2025
Verb
The title plays off the actual legislation, the 1965 Hart-Celler Act, which dismissed the racist nature of the country’s quota system that favored Northern and Western European nations.
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 15 Apr. 2025
City were played off the pitch for the vast majority of a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Bournemouth on November 2, the first league defeat of a bad run that lasted three to four months and is arguably not yet over.
—Sam Lee, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for playoff
Cite this Entry
“Playoff.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/playoff. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
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