PLAY Synonyms: 375 Similar and Opposite Words

play 1 of 5

verb (1)

as in to recreate

to engage in activity for amusement told her son that he needed some time to run and play in the yard after his hard work

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Relevance

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as in to perform

to present a portrayal or performance of played Hamlet in the campus production of the classic

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as in to pose (as)

to pretend to be (what one is not) in appearance or behavior stop playing the innocent, because I know that you were behind that prank

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as in to lounge

to spend time in aimless activity just played around while we waited for the bus to arrive

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as in to manipulate

to deal with (something) usually skillfully or efficiently this is how we're going to play the situation

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as in to put

to risk (something) on the outcome of an uncertain event figuring that she had little to lose, she played her last few bucks on the state lottery

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play

2 of 5

noun

ˈplā

as in relaxation

activity engaged in to amuse oneself it's such a delight to watch the children in their play

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as in drama

a written work in which the story is told through speech and action that is intended to be acted out on stage we'll be putting on a school play using that stage

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as in game

an attitude or manner not to be taken seriously I didn't mean to insult anyone, for it was all just play

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as in use

the act or practice of employing something for a particular purpose the host's sense of humor was obviously in play during the awards ceremony

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as in ruse

a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end the guy at the bar made an unusually creative play to get her phone number

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play (on or upon)

3 of 5

verb (2)

as in to use

to take unfair advantage of the candidate played on the voters' prejudices

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play (upon)

4 of 5

verb (3)

as in to exploit

to control or take advantage of by artful, unfair, or insidious means played upon the customer's vanity to convince her to buy the expensive makeup kit

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play (with)

5 of 5

verb (4)

as in to toy (with)

to handle thoughtlessly, ignorantly, or mischievously please don't play with the telephone

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Examples of play in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Murray plays a famous writer who upon his death tasks a protégé and former lover (Naomi Watts) to adopt his giant dog. —

Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 6 Sep. 2024 The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects play a crucial role in combating harmful reactive oxygen species, which are unstable molecules that cause oxidative stress (an imbalance of free radicals and antioxidants in your body) and damage healthy kidney cells. —

Devineé Lingo, M.s., Rdn, Health, 6 Sep. 2024

Noun

The movie is a massive play for the company whose biggest recent festival acquisitions were Park Chan-wook’s Decision to Leave and Ira Sachs’ Passages. —

Mia Galuppo, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Sep. 2024 On Tuesday, Kelce gushed about his girlfriend when asked about her interest in football and whether she's designed some plays for the team. —

Bryan West, USA TODAY, 5 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for play

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