play 1 of 2

verb

Definition of playnext
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to perform
to present a portrayal or performance of played Hamlet in the campus production of the classic

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
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

Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in to lounge
to spend time in aimless activity just played around while we waited for the bus to arrive

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in to manipulate
to deal with (something) usually skillfully or efficiently this is how we're going to play the situation

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

play

2 of 2

noun

ˈplā How to pronounce play (audio)
1
as in relaxation
activity engaged in to amuse oneself it's such a delight to watch the children in their play

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
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

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun play differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of play are fun, game, jest, and sport. While all these words mean "action or speech that provides amusement or arouses laughter," play stresses the opposition to earnest without implying any malice or mischief.

pretended to strangle his brother in play

In what contexts can fun take the place of play?

While the synonyms fun and play are close in meaning, fun usually implies laughter or gaiety but may imply merely a lack of serious or ulterior purpose.

played cards just for fun

How do game and sport relate to one another, in the sense of play?

Game is close to sport, and often stresses mischievous or malicious fun.

made game of their poor relations

When can jest be used instead of play?

While in some cases nearly identical to play, jest implies lack of earnestness and may suggest a hoaxing or teasing.

hurt by remarks said only in jest

When would sport be a good substitute for play?

Although the words sport and play have much in common, sport applies especially to the arousing of laughter against someone.

teasing begun in sport led to anger

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of play
Verb
Hamill plays a man only known as the Major, the military commander who oversees the Walk and gives the walkers their literal marching orders. —Adam B. Vary, Variety, 26 July 2025 Messi and Alba practiced with the club Friday in anticipation of playing in Saturday’s match before MLS announced the suspension. —Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 26 July 2025
Noun
The dribbler by Hernandez traveled four feet, with Wilmer Flores and Bivins unable to make the play. —Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 13 July 2025 One of Netflix’s big movie plays for July is the sequel to its very silly but very fun action fantasy film The Old Guard. —Abid Rahman, HollywoodReporter, 1 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for play
Recent Examples of Synonyms for play
  1. perform
  2. lounge
  3. manipulate
  4. put
  5. relaxation
  6. drama
  7. game
  8. use
Verb
  • Shumate’s memo directs prosecutors to prioritize investigations against doctors, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies that perform such procedures.
    — Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 2 Aug. 2025
  • Ursa Minor recently consolidated its split California/Oregon operations into a single facility in the Portland area, which performs all installations.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 2 Aug. 2025
Definition of perform
Verb
  • Whether your plans for the season involve lounging poolside or simply spending more time socializing on your newly furnished patio, outdoor bar carts are ready to roll for an at-home happy hour at impromptu times.
    — Blake Bakkila, Architectural Digest, 1 Aug. 2025
  • His own big dogs get a walk every day but then are content lounging around and following him from room to room.
    — Jen Reeder, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2025
Definition of lounge
Verb
  • Fast-forward to this month, when Paramount agreed to a $16 million settlement to move past Trump's claims that CBS's 60 Minutes deceptively manipulated a pre-election interview with Kamala Harris.
    — Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 25 July 2025
  • The Dershowitz theory does not compute because the government invariably manipulates projections about future harm for ulterior partisan or personal motives.
    — Bruce Fein, Baltimore Sun, 24 July 2025
Definition of manipulate
Verb
  • Robert put the club ahead one inning later with the 99th home run of his career.
    — LaMond Pope, Chicago Tribune, 29 July 2025
  • The state health department distributes $12 million in SNAP-Ed funding annually to half a dozen agencies who, in turn, put staff in schools, senior centers, food pantries and farmers markets to teach food stamp recipients how to eat healthier and live a more active lifestyle.
    — Kelly Meyerhofer, jsonline.com, 29 July 2025
Definition of put
Noun
  • Photos from the family vacation show all the kids having fun together, while the adults enjoy some relaxation in the Florida sunshine.
    — Angela Andaloro, People.com, 5 Aug. 2025
  • The primary suite is truly a retreat, featuring a steam shower, sauna, and sculptural soaking tub designed for serious relaxation.
    — Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 4 Aug. 2025
Definition of relaxation
Noun
  • The movie is an English-language reinterpretation of Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 Japanese kidnapping drama High and Low, which is loosely based on the 1959 novel King’s Ransom by Ed McBain (Evan Hunter).
    — Regina Cho, VIBE.com, 1 Aug. 2025
  • That’s how director Yu Je-won described the Studio Dragon drama Love Take Two at a recent press conference for the series.
    — Joan MacDonald, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2025
Definition of drama
Noun
  • After navigating spot starts and bullpen games for the first two months of the 2025 season, manager John Schneider finally found a set starting five in June.
    — Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 31 July 2025
  • Cristhian Paredes scored the only goal in a win over LAFC the last time out, bringing an end to its run of five away games without a victory.
    — Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 July 2025
Definition of game
Noun
  • Soroka has improved this year due to improved use of his slurve, which he’s thrown 35 percent of the time, holding hitters to a .124 batting average.
    — Phil Rogers, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2025
  • Earlier this month, Broadnax proposed a $6.3 billion austerity budget that calls for a shuffle of police and firefighter staffing, a drawdown of money to help build affordable housing and the use of $14.1 million in reserves to offset limited property tax revenue.
    — Ella McCarthy, Austin American Statesman, 31 July 2025
Definition of use

Phrases Containing play

Browse Nearby Words

plausibly
play
playact
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Play.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/play. Accessed 8 Aug. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on play

Nglish: Translation of play for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about play

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Using Bullet Points ( • )

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Our Best Historical Slang Terms

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Better Ways to Say 'This Sucks'

8 Words with Fascinating Histories

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Our Best Historical Slang Terms

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

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 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
iykyk if you know you know slang written in a neon
Quiz: Abbreviation Station TFW you have to figure out what 15 abbreviations ...
See All