toy with

phrasal verb

toyed with; toying with; toys with

: to think about (something) briefly and not very seriously

I toyed with the idea of moving to France but ended up staying here.

: to move or touch (something) with one's fingers often without thinking

She toyed with her hair while she talked on the phone.

: to deal with or control (someone or something) in a clever and usually unfair or selfish way

Do you really love me, or are you just toying with me?

Don't toy with my emotions.

Examples of toy with in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Sam Woodward on the stand testifying after his attorney asked him to move his hair out of his face Pool In Sam Woodward's version, Blaze was toying with him and threatening to out him. —

Tracy Smith, CBS News, 21 Sep. 2024 As far back as 2018, after being invited to attend that year’s BRICS annual summit meeting, Turkey had been toying with the idea of doing so. —

Jorge Heine, The Conversation, 12 Sep. 2024 Sabalenka toyed with the fans after winning the second point, motioning her hands for more noise. —

Sean Gregory, TIME, 8 Sep. 2024 Some users recently spotted the test, and there have been indications from at least 2022 that the company has toyed with a rectangular grid. —

Jay Peters, The Verge, 16 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for toy with

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'toy with.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.