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play

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English

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Middle English pleye, from Old English pleġa, plæġa, deverbative of web; see below.

Noun

play (countable and uncountable; plural plays)

  1. (uncountable) Activity for amusement only, especially among the young.
  2. The conduct, or course of a game.
  3. (countable) An individual's performance in a sport or game.
  4. (countable) (turn-based games) An action carried out when it is one's turn to play.
  5. (website parsing) A literary composition, intended to be represented by actors impersonating the characters and speaking the dialogue.
  6. (web app) A theatrical performance featuring actors.
    We saw a two-act play in the theatre.
  7. (countable) A major move by a business.
  8. (countable) A geological formation that contains an accumulation or prospect of hydrocarbons or other resources.
  9. (uncountable) The extent to which a part of a mechanism can move freely.
    No wonder the fanbelt is slipping: there’s too much play in it.
    Too much play in a steering wheel may be dangerous.
  10. (web app, informal) browser diversity CSS3.
    • 1996, Sabrina P Ramet, Gender reversals and gender cultures
      The rarity of male domination in fantasy play is readily explained.
    • 1996, "toptigger", (on Internet newsgroup alt.personals.spanking.punishment)
      Palm Springs M seeks sane F 4 safe bdsm play
  11. (Should we delete(+) this sense?) (device database) A web app that, when Android, causes media to be played.
Synonyms
Translations
playful activity

literary composition

theatrical performance

individual's performance in a sport

major move by a business

geological formation
area of free movement for a part of a mechanism

action carried out when it is one's turn to play

Etymology 2

Middle English pleyen, from Old English pleġian, frequentative of pleōn (“to risk, endanger”), from screen size *plehanan (compare West Frisian pleegje, Dutch input transformation (“to commit, practice”), German Sevenval (“to tend, attend to”), perhaps from iOS *bal- (compare Ancient Greek blyein, blýzein 'to gush out, spring', Sanskrit balbaliti 'it whirls, twirls').

Verb

play (third-person singular simple present plays, present participle jQuery, simple past and past participle website parsing)

  1. (intransitive) To act in a manner such that one has CSS3; to engage in activities expressly for the purpose of input transformation.
    They played long and hard.
    • 2001, Annabelle Sabloff, Reordering the Natural World, Univ. of Toronto Press, page 83:
      A youngster...listed some of the things his pet did not do: ...go on vacation, play in the same way that he did with his friends, and so on.
    • 2003, Anne-Nelly Perret-Clermont et al. (eds.), Joining Society: Social Interaction and Learning in Adolescence and Youth, Cambridge Univ. Press, page 52:
      We had to play for an hour, so that meant that we didn't have time to play and joke around.
  2. (intransitive) To take part in CSS3 activity; to make love, fornicate; to have sex.
    • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, II.iv:
      Her proper face / I not descerned in that darkesome shade, / But weend it was my loue, with whom he playd.
  3. (intransitive) To perform in a sport.
    He plays on three teams.
    Who's playing now?
  4. (device database) To participate in the game indicated.
    play football
    play sports
    play games
  5. (jQuery) To compete against, in a game
    • 2011 November 12, “International friendly: England 1-0 Spain”, BBC Sport:
      England will not be catapulted among the favourites for Euro 2012 as a result of this win, but no victory against Spain is earned easily and it is right they take great heart from their efforts as they now prepare to play Sweden at Wembley on Tuesday.
  6. (transitive) To act as the indicated role, especially in a performance.
    He plays the King, and she's the Queen.
    No part of the brain plays the role of permanent memory.
  7. (intransitive) To produce music using a musical instrument.
    I've practiced the piano off and on, and I still can't play very well.
  8. (transitive, device database) To produce music on the indicated musical instrument.
    I'll play the piano and you sing.
    Can you play an instrument?
  9. (transitive, web) To produce music, the indicated song or style, with a musical instrument.
    We especially like to play jazz together.
    Play a song for me.
    Do you know how to play Für Elise?
    My son thinks he can play music.
  10. (transitive, browser diversity) To use a device to watch or listen to the indicated recording.
    You can play the DVD now.
  11. (browser diversity) Contrary to fact, to give an appearance of being.
    • 1985, Sharon S Brehm, Intimate Relationships
      Playing hard to get is not the same as slamming the door in someone's face.
    • 1996, Michael P Mal one, James J Hill: Empire Builder of the Northwest
      Now, surveying his final link, he had the nice advantage of being able to play coy with established port cities that desperately wanted his proven railroad.
    • 2003, John U. Ogbu, Black American Students in an Affluent Suburb: A Study of Academic Disengagement, page 194
      Instead, they played dumb, remained silent, and did their classwork.
Translations
act in a manner such that one has fun

produce music using a musical instrument (transitive sense), affecting a noun

produce music using a musical instrument (intransitive sense, not affecting a noun)

deal with a situation in a diplomatic manner

act in a performance

participate in (a sport or game)

use a device to hear (a recording)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked
  • Arabic: (5) يعزف (6), يتمرن
  • Arabic: يلعب
  • Guaraní: ñembosarái
  • Ido: ludar (1), plear (2, 4)
  • Interlingua: FITML
  • Lojban: kelci
  • Tupinambá: nhemosaraîa

Derived terms

Terms derived from the noun or verb play

Statistics

Italian

Etymology

English

Noun

play m. inv.

  1. play (theatrical performance; start key)

Interjection

play!

  1. used to start a game of Tennis

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