as in to highlight
to indicate the importance of by centering attention on
that TV news program plays up sensational stories just to get higher ratings
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of play up
Pagliocca had a vision for the 2025 team — a group that could sling 3-pointers and play up-tempo offense while running through Reese and Kamilla Cardoso on both ends of the court.
—
Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 3 Sep. 2025
Xi played up a message that world is in a state of flux and chaos, and China is the responsible, stable power to guide it into the future.
—Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2025
Lynch, the women’s intercontinental champion and one of the top heels on the RAW roster, played up her villainous role to the crowd.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 26 Aug. 2025
In the 50 Shades films, her blankness gave Anastasia Steele a naïveté that could be played up or down depending on the game of the scene.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for play up
Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 3 Sep. 2025
Xi played up a message that world is in a state of flux and chaos, and China is the responsible, stable power to guide it into the future.
—Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2025
Lynch, the women’s intercontinental champion and one of the top heels on the RAW roster, played up her villainous role to the crowd.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 26 Aug. 2025
In the 50 Shades films, her blankness gave Anastasia Steele a naïveté that could be played up or down depending on the game of the scene.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for play up
Recent Examples of Synonyms for play up
Verb
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The win highlighted the robot’s endurance and hinted at broader applications in sports and beyond.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
16 Sep. 2025
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Recent news reports highlight several incidents where this sort of data leak has already happened.—
Bernard Marr,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In recent years, as American moms have been enthusiastically encouraged to breastfeed, many experts have emphasized that making sure infants are fed, period, should be parents’ highest priority.—
Yasmin Tayag,
The Atlantic,
14 Sep. 2025
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Psychologist Marshall Rosenberg, the founder of Nonviolent Communication, emphasized that beneath most criticisms or demands lies a universal human need.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Assistant Chief Constable Christian Bunt stressed the absence of public access.—
Amanda Castro
Hannah Parry
Shane Croucher
Jack Royston,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Sep. 2025
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Gino helped open Animal Kingdom in 1998, when Disney World unveiled the groundbreaking theme park that the company stressed, at the time, was not a zoo, but rather a theme park inspired by and dedicated to the conservation of wildlife.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Advertisement Advertisement The episode features conversations with Syed in prison and after his release, plus lawyers involved with the case and Syed’s family members.—
Olivia B. Waxman,
Time,
19 Sep. 2025
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The cast also features Dagoberto Gama, Ianis Guerrero, Claudia Ramírez, Carlos Aragón, Lisa Owen, and Natasha Dupeyrón.—
Veronica Villafañe,
Forbes.com,
19 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Play up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/play%20up. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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