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Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

導出

play

Related topics: Other games, Theatre, Music

1 children 儿童 [intransitiveI, transitiveT]DGO when children play, they do things that they enjoy, often with other people or with toys 玩，玩耍

Kids were playing and chasing each other.

孩子们在互相追逐嬉闹。

play catch/house/tag/school etc

Outside, the children were playing cowboys and Indians.

孩子们在外面玩牛仔和印第安人的游戏。

play with

Did you like to play with dolls when you were little?

你小时候喜不喜欢玩洋娃娃？

Parents need to spend time just playing with their children.

父母应该花时间和自己的孩子一起玩耍。

2 sports/games 运动/比赛

a) [intransitiveI, transitiveT]PLAY A GAME OR SPORT to take part or compete in a game or sport 参赛，参加〔比赛或运动〕

Karen began playing basketball when she was six.

卡伦六岁时开始打篮球。

If you feel any pain, you shouldn’t play.

如果你觉得疼，就不该参赛。

Men were sitting in the park, playing cards.

男人们坐在公园里打牌。

play against

Bristol will play against Coventry next week.

下周布里斯托尔队将迎战考文垂队。

She’s playing Helen Evans in the semi-final (=playing against her).

半决赛中她将迎战海伦·埃文斯。

play for

Moxon played for England in ten test matches.

莫克森代表英格兰队参加过十场国际板球对抗赛决赛阶段比赛。

b) [transitiveT] to use a particular piece, card, person etc in a game or sport 〔比赛中〕走〔子〕；出〔牌〕；派〔某人〕出场

Harrison played a ten of spades.

哈里森出了一张黑桃十。

The Regents played Eddie at center (=used him as a player in that position) in the game against Arizona.

在和亚利桑那州立大学队的比赛中，理真大学队派埃迪上场担任中锋。

c) [intransitiveI, transitiveT] to take a particular position on a team 〔在某运动队中〕担当，充任

Garvey played first base for the Dodgers.

加维在道奇队中打一垒。

d) [transitiveT] to hit a ball in a particular way or to a particular place in a game or sport 〔在比赛或运动中〕击〔球〕，打〔球〕

She played the ball low, just over the net.

她把球打得很低，刚刚过网。

3 music 音乐 [intransitiveI, transitiveT]

PERFORMto perform a piece of music on a musical instrument 演奏，弹奏

He’s learning to play the piano.

他在学习弹钢琴。

She played a Bach prelude.

她演奏了一首巴赫的前奏曲。

Haden has played with many jazz greats.

黑登和许多著名的爵士乐手合作过。

A small orchestra was playing.

一支小型管弦乐队在演奏。

4 radio/cd etc 广播/激光唱片等 [intransitiveI, transitiveT] if a radio, CD etc plays, or if you play it, it produces sound, especially music 播放

The bedside radio played softly.

床边的收音机播放着轻柔的乐曲。

play a record/CD/tape etc

DJs playing the latest house and techno tracks

播放着最新豪斯音乐和泰克诺音乐的音乐节目主持人们

5 theatre/film 剧院/电影

6 play a part/role EFFECT/INFLUENCEto have an effect or influence on something 〔在某事中〕起作用；〔在某事中〕有影响

Examples from the Corpus

play a part/role• Although the budget committees guide Congress's actions on spending, every committee plays a role.• The researchers said more investigation was needed into whether vaccinations or pesticides played a part.• But big-city gangsters also play a part.• Our goal is to make sure everyone plays a part and shares in the credit.• Sure, the Pentium chip plays a part, but other components provide the big difference.• Therefore, both over-confidence and under-confidence may play a part in creating an environment in which accidents happen more readily.• The New Man rejects traditional roles of parenthood and likes to play a part in decision-making.• Schneider played a key role in getting the organization started.• By speaking out about envy between women, comedy can play a part in helping us to heal it in ourselves.• He was six now and understood that I had played a role in his parents separation.• Together with the police everyone can play a part in improving the security of their neighborhood.• Luck has to play a part in it.• Men now play a larger part in looking after their children.• Hart clearly played a role in the decision to change admission standards.• The Secretary of State played a leading role in the government's successful foreign policy.• The most effective learning occurs when the child is allowed to play a more active role in the learning process.

7 play ball

Examples from the Corpus

play ball• It was a timeless scene: a brick house, a mown meadow, a man and his boy playing ball.• It seemed clear to us that we would always have the time to play ball and get better as we went along.• When they break a window playing ball or lose something that belongs to a friend, they should make amends.• She played ball, she had difficulty with spelling, and she wanted to be a doctor when she grew up.• He has no one to play ball with and tosses his ball against the wall in a most despondent fashion.• The editor would have doubled it, if you'd played ball with me.• There is a simple, inexpensive solution for those who refuse to play ball with the system.

8 pretend 假装 [linking verb]BEHAVE to behave as if you are a particular kind of person or have a particular feeling or quality, even though it is not true 假装，装扮

9 behave 表现 [transitiveT always + adverbadv/prepositionprep]BEHAVE to behave in a particular way in a situation, in order to achieve the result or effect that you want 〔以某种方式〕表现，行事

10 play games HIDE/NOT SHOWto hide your real feelings or wishes in order to achieve something in a clever or secret way – used to show disapproval 耍花招，耍手段〔含贬义〕

Examples from the Corpus

play games• Don't waste time by playing games.• The Dauphin was showing Henry that he was just a stupid kid who should still be playing games.• I don't play games at all!• But Symington and the Legislature are simply playing games here.• Just going out to resupply some patrols on a secure road was so bland that we played games to make it interesting.• As a child she preferred playing games with boys to dressing up dolls.• If they want to play games with their parachutes, then that is their affair.• They can only create challenges for themselves, play games within the games.

11 play something by ear

Examples from the Corpus

play something by ear• As he has no political party that can provide him with practical support, he is forced to play it by ear.• At 2, he played the piano by ear.• But the government is having to play it by ear.• He heard jazz records at home when very young and played piano by ear.• Well, she would play it by ear.• So each played it by ear, with resulting policy shifts that often appeared to be not only sudden but incomprehensible.

12. play a joke/trick/prank on somebody JOKEto do something to someone as a joke or trick 跟某人开玩笑，捉弄某人

Examples from the Corpus

play a joke/trick/prank on somebody• He had always played tricks on her.• Her brain had to be playing tricks on her.• Jack felt edgy but convinced himself that his nerves were playing tricks on him.• Somewhat perturbed, Ted flung the door open still believing that the platelayers were playing tricks on him.• In one of them, a man named Wakefield decides to play a joke on his wife.• Yes, fate was playing tricks on me.• They delight in playing tricks on mortals, though they will cease to give trouble if politely requested to do so.• It allowed me to detect instances when time played tricks on the memory of some of the respondents.

13 play the game

Examples from the Corpus

play the game• Diillon won't get promoted if he's not willing to play the game.• Last year three hundred and sixty pupils were injured from three thousand schools who regularly play the game.• Most manufacturers have played the game.• Until that point we were really just playing the game.• We assume to start with that the weighted patterns provide a rough guide to playing the game.• He thought he was playing the game again.• Just like playing the game itself, it seems.• I know how to play the game myself.• While online, the user could play the game, which would be stored in short-term memory.

14 play the race/nationalist/environmentalist etc card to use a particular subject in politics in order to gain an advantage 打种族/民族主义/环保主义等的牌〔指使用某个政治话题来赢得优势〕

Examples from the Corpus

play the race/nationalist/environmentalist etc card• Mugabe now plays the race card.• It will give the various groups and Tory Members who seek to play the race card the opportunity to do so.

15 play your cards right SUCCEED IN DOING somethingto say or do things in a situation in such a way that you gain as much as possible from it 做事精明，处理得当

Examples from the Corpus

play your cards right• Oh, no - she knew how to play her cards right.• The domino effect can work for us as well as against us if we play our cards right.• This could all turn out for the best if he played his cards right.

16. play your cards close to your chest to keep secret what you are doing in a situation 对自己的行为秘而不宣

Examples from the Corpus

play your cards close to your chest• Roslin, known for playing his cards close to his vest, declined to comment.

17 play into somebody’s hands to do what someone you are competing with wants you to do, without realizing it 〔因做对手所希望的事〕正中对手下怀

Examples from the Corpus

play into somebody’s hands• And what good you, you silly fool, playing into my hands like this?• Whatever he did would play into the hands of Isambard, whose traps were always dual, and could not be evaded.• We should be careful not to play into the hands of murderers.• Such action, I believed - and still believe - would have played into the hands of my enemies.• This, the futures industry frets, would play into the hands of Rep.• It plays into the hands of the opposition.• It would be playing into his hands to react to his deliberate teasing.

18 play for time DELAYto try to delay something so that you have more time to prepare for it or prevent it from happening 为争取时间而拖延

Examples from the Corpus

play for time• The governments, nervous, are playing for time.• The rebel's current ceasefire doesn't amount to much more than playing for time.• The U.S. strategy over the past weeks has been to play for time.• Henry's only plan at this moment was to play for time.• The confused evidence suggests they are acting on their own initiative, not on directives from East Berlin to play for time.• The government is playing for time.• Stop playing for time and give us an answer.• He decides, literally, to play for time and makes a debut at Nero's banquet that evening.• Truman played for time by appointing a brains trust of three to advise him.• Mr Kasyanov seems now to be playing for time, hoping to get through January without ferocious clashes with creditors.• Edmond Herv is a close friend and he tells me that sometimes you have to play for time to solve a problem.

19 play tricks (on you) if your mind, memory, sight etc plays tricks on you, you feel confused and not sure about what is happening 〔头脑、记忆、视力等〕使（某人）产生错觉

Examples from the Corpus

play tricks (on you)• He had always played tricks on her.• Her brain had to be playing tricks on her.• Jack felt edgy but convinced himself that his nerves were playing tricks on him.• Somewhat perturbed, Ted flung the door open still believing that the platelayers were playing tricks on him.• Yes, fate was playing tricks on me.• They delight in playing tricks on mortals, though they will cease to give trouble if politely requested to do so.• It allowed me to detect instances when time played tricks on the memory of some of the respondents.• He knew, too, that his head had been aching and that his mind was capable of playing tricks upon him.

20. play the market BFSRISKto risk money on the stock market as a way of trying to earn more money 〔在证券市场〕买卖证券

Examples from the Corpus

play the market• For example: Do Social Security recipients want government playing the market?• The reverse, Adibi said, is true for those whose income is too low to play the market.• And this is why many growers are choosing to let their grain merchants play the markets for them.• The first swap was in December 1983 but the council had not begun to play the market in earnest until late 1987.

21 play the system ADVANTAGEto use the rules of a system in a clever way, to gain advantage for yourself 钻制度的空子〔使自己得益〕

Examples from the Corpus

play the system• Accountants know how to play the tax system.

22. play second fiddle (to somebody) (also play second banana informal)IMPORTANT to be in a lower position or rank than someone else （给某人）当第二把手[副手]，居次要地位

Examples from the Corpus

play second fiddle (to somebody)• Mr Pozsgay was simply fed up with playing second fiddle, a characteristic that was to re-emerge later.• Even the lyrics tend to play second fiddle and are generally added after the main melody has been composed.• He was never more than a B-movie actor, playing second fiddle to actors like Errol Flynn.• He had been a reluctant ally and may well have resented playing second fiddle to his younger brother.• The locals were not satisfied playing second fiddle to Los Angeles.• But putts and drives will play second fiddle to schmoozing when top sports celebrities take center stage at the golf club.• Throughout her married life she had to play second fiddle to the interests of her husband.• She might also have simply got tired of playing second fiddle to the Prince's pastimes.• So often he has played second fiddle to Wright and notched only nine goals last season to his partner's 30.

23. play hard to get PRETENDATTRACTto pretend that you are not sexually interested in someone so that they will become more interested in you 〔对异性〕欲擒故纵〔故意装出对某人不感兴趣的样子以吸引对方〕

Examples from the Corpus

play hard to get• You should call her again - I think she's just playing hard to get.• And they may not just be playing hard to get.• I am not going to suggest that you play hard to get.• If it was Viola, she was obviously playing hard to get.• It had nothing to do with teasing or playing hard to get.

24. smile 笑容 [intransitiveI always + adverbadv/prepositionprep] writtenSMILE if a smile plays about someone’s lips, they smile slightly 〔微笑〕浮现

25. play hooky American EnglishAmE, play truant British EnglishSE to stay away from school without permission 逃学，旷课

Examples from the Corpus

play hooky• Maricela Roman will never forget the day her own 4-year-old ratted on her when she tried to play hooky.• Abraham and MacGregor begin tasting that delicious sense of playing hooky from life, just like two big, naughty kids.• A boy playing hooky in Texas is not a criminal who is put away for study.

26 play with fire DANGEROUSto do something that could have a very dangerous or harmful result 做危险的事，玩火

Examples from the Corpus

play with fire• Dating the boss's daughter is playing with fire.• The mask made him seem menacing, and she suddenly had the sensation that with Lucenzo she was playing with fire.• Failure to stick to the safety rules is simply playing with fire.• These men are criminals. If you get involved with them, you'll be playing with fire.• Charity stunt team warned ... you're playing with fire.• Roy Alon who appeared in many of the James Bond films said the team were playing with fire.• Sir Hugo advises Deronda not to play with fire.• So, your employer is playing with fire.• With Emma he had played with fire and narrowly escaped burning.• She was playing with fire, in Lydia's opinion.• Manchester United continue to play with fire, losing 2-1 against Anderlecht.

27 play to your strengths to do what you are able to do well, rather than trying to do other things 发挥自己的长处，拿出自己的优势

28 light 光线 [intransitiveI always + adverbadv/prepositionprep] writtenSHINE if light plays on something, it shines on it and moves on it 〔在…上〕闪烁，掠过

29. water 水 [intransitiveI] written if a fountain plays, water comes from it 〔喷泉〕喷水

30. play a hose/light on something MOVE something OR somebodyto point a hose or light towards something so that water or light goes onto it 把软管/光线对准某处

31. play the field SEX/HAVE SEX WITHto have sexual relationships with a lot of different people 乱搞男女关系，滥交

Examples from the Corpus

play the field• Better chance to play the field.• Perhaps because he plays the field.• He gave up playing the field and married a year ago, to a sinewy woman called Cheryl Berkoff.• So she had played the field, enjoying male company without getting in too deep or too seriously.

32 play fast and loose with something to not be careful about what you do, especially by not obeying the law or a rule 不负责任地利用某物〔尤指不遵守法律或规定〕

Examples from the Corpus

play fast and loose with something• They probably see it as a place where government plays fast and loose with tax dollars.• And there is his willingness to play fast and loose with the facts.• Besides, it is playing fast and loose with the statistics to take 1981 as the baseline for the Government's claims.• To say that the Wattersons had played fast and loose with their investors' capital was an understatement.• In what follows, I shall play fast and loose with these words and the subtle distinctions between them.

33. play happy families British EnglishBrE to spend time with your family, doing normal things, especially so that your family appears to be happy when it is not 维持幸福家庭的假象

PHRASAL VERBS

Examples from the Corpus

play• Kendra's in her room playing.• Ask Alex if he wants to play.• In the Pittsburgh-Bills game, I have to like the way Buffalo is playing.• Age-sensitive political issues such as Social Security and Medicare will play a major role in the campaign, of course.• Your child can play all three goats and you the troll if there are just the two of you.• Karl loves basketball and plays almost every weekend.• Blake's composing and playing are, perhaps ironically, bristling with life.• Relaxing music is played at the beginning of the float and again at the end to indicate your time is up.• I have a recording of Kreisler playing Bach's E major concerto.• Do you know how to play backgammon?• The neck feels solid and moderately chubby, although not immediately reminiscent of anything I've played before.• Charles likes to play Celtic music on his flute.• I've only played chess a few times.• Did you ever play doctors and nurses when you were small?• It's been a long time since I played hockey.• Come on - let's go inside and play house!• I'm playing in a tennis match this Sunday.• Do you play in an orchestra?• Every Sunday we play Monopoly or some other board game.• I used to play tennis all the time.• I played the ace of clubs and won the game.• Matt plays the drums.• She tried to teach him how to play the piano, but he had no great talent for it.• I didn't know you could play the violin.• "They played well against us, " Cooper said, "I have to give them credit."• Jimmy was playing with a little boat in the bathtub.• Ian was upstairs playing with his new train set.

play catch/house/tag/school etc• Got too possessive, kept wanting to play house.• Some legislators set up housekeeping when the biennial gatherings began and played house for the six-month sessions.• Elegantly restored ballroom that plays house, garage and disco to a smartly dressed, trendy crowd-no jeans or trainers.• I read to him, played catch in the alley and taught him how to ride his new bike.• Universal Pictures wanted Chase to play house philanderer Otter, and the role was offered to him.• This was not playing catch; this was important.• The voice was not what I'd have expected from a girl who'd been playing house with a mug like Mahoney.• From my second-floor vantage point I could see my classmates as they tumbled out into the quad playing catch with my shoes.

play for• Iverson plays for the Philadelphia 76ers.

play a record/CD/tape etc• I was intensely interested in journalism, and all the things around it, whether it was performing or actually playing records.• I was talking to her at a women's group meeting - we were playing records.• They also perform surgery, detect radiation and play records.• We help each other with homework ... then play records and that.• The operator plays a recording from one recent evening.• This gave us an overall playing record of four wins out of six matches played, with one defeat and one match abandoned.• No baby, just a tape recorder playing a tape of my little sister crying when she was a baby.• Some people think you just play records, when in fact you're putting together a whole programme.

play a role/part/character etc• The goals are to make sure everyone understands, everyone plays a part, and everyone shares in the credit.• Throughout the play characters are giving advice to one another as to how they should behave.• The New Man rejects traditional roles of parenthood and likes to play a part in decision-making.• Interestingly the commercial value of the site did not play a part in the calculation.• Do methods of communication play a part in the creation of this desirable environment?• The fourth dimension also played a part in uniting a number of abstract painters and sculptors in the inter-war period.• Third, the student plays a role of dissent.• So, although new designs and reorganizations play a role, they are never enough to shape a complete vision of how.

playing dead• The snake fools predators by playing dead.• Indeed, it must be fully aware of what is happening to it when it is playing dead.• Liz thought of an insect playing dead.• I just laid there playing dead, and he was pawing the ground, trying to get me to get up.

play it carefully/cool etc• Have to find out for himself, no other way, poke around, listen, ask, play it carefully.• She was trying to play it cool.• The band had wanted a major deal for at least two years previously, but were determined to play it cool.• Rather than rushing into print in Nature, however, Cantor played it cool and cautious.• Tod's playing it cool, of course, as always.• Plus, playing it cool ... the dark secrets of an orchid grower And, who said Robins could sing?

Related topics: Theatre

play2 S1 W2 noun

1 theatre 剧院 [countableC]APT a story that is written to be performed by actors, especially in a theatre 剧本；戏剧

2 amusement 娱乐 [uncountableU]PLAY A GAME OR SPORT things that people, especially children, do for amusement rather than as work 〔尤指儿童的〕游戏，玩耍；娱乐

3 effect 效果 [uncountableU] the effect or influence of something 影响；作用

4 action in a game or sport 比赛或体育活动中的动作PLAY A GAME OR SPORT

5 in play/out of play DSif a ball is in play or out of play, it is inside or outside the area in which the rules of the game allow you to hit, kick, catch etc the ball 〔球〕在界内/界外

Examples from the Corpus

in play/out of play• Courier put only 50 percent of his first serves in play.

6. play on words SAYa use of a word that is interesting or amusing because it can be understood as having two very different meanings 使用双关语 SYN pun

Examples from the Corpus

play on words• But most of all, children laugh at jokes that are a play on words.• Perhaps the best solution is to see the place as a play on words.• Some scholars believe that Matthew is making a play on words and that the original word was Nezer.• In this chapter, I hope to show that these distinctions are important and not merely a play on words.• This was a play on words.• With Abraham's and Sarah's laughter the storyteller is indulging in another play on words.• Such, at least, is the suggestion of that play on words.• None the less the play on words is there in the text, and is appropriate.

7 play of light LIGHTpatterns made by light as it moves over a surface 光的闪烁

Examples from the Corpus

play of light• Make notes as you watch the play of light in various areas as the sun tracks east to west across the sky.• I have a wonderful play of light and shade, and the tungsten light gives a very similar effect.

8 make a play for something TRY TO DO OR GET somethingto make an attempt to gain something 设法得到某物

Examples from the Corpus

make a play for something• Left alone for a few minutes on Vik's birthday, Karen makes a play for Steve.• Kramer wondered if she was worth making a play for.• Surely only the most decadent of aristocrats would make a play for another woman while his wife was in the same room.

9 make a play for somebody to try to begin a romantic or sexual relationship with someone 想和某人恋爱[发生性关系]

Examples from the Corpus

make a play for somebody• Left alone for a few minutes on Vik's birthday, Karen makes a play for Steve.• Kramer wondered if she was worth making a play for.• Surely only the most decadent of aristocrats would make a play for another woman while his wife was in the same room.

10 looseness 松动 [uncountableU]MOVE/CHANGE POSITION if there is some play in something, it is loose and can be moved 松动

→ fair play , foul play

COLLOCATIONS

verbs

write a play 写剧本

So far, he has written three plays.

迄今他已写了三个剧本。

go to (see) a play 看戏

While we were in New York, we went to a play.

我们在纽约时去看了一出戏。

see a play 看戏

I’ve never seen the play.

我从未看过这出戏。

watch a play 〔认真〕看戏

Some of the audience were talking instead of watching the play.

一些观众在讲话,而不在观剧。

perform a play 演戏

The play was performed by Brighton Youth Theatre.

该剧由布赖顿青年剧团出演。

act/perform/appear in a play 出演某剧

nShe acted in many plays on the London stage.

be in a play (=be performing in a play) 出演某剧

nMichael is currently in a play on Broadway.

ndo a play spoken (=arrange it or perform in it)

Bob asked if I would do this play, and I agreed.

put on a play (=arrange for it to be performed) 上演某剧

nThe school puts on a Nativity play every Christmas.

direct a play (=tell the actors what to do) 执导某剧

nThe play is directed by Paulette Randall.

produce/stage a play (=arrange its performance) 制作/上演某剧

rehearse a play (=practise it) 排演

nWe spent weeks rehearsing the play.

na play opens (=its performances start)

The play opens in San Francisco on Wednesday for a three-week run.

na play runs (=it continues to be performed)

The play ran for five months.

na play closes (=its performances stop)

The play closes on Sunday, so don’t miss it!

ADJECTIVES/NOUN + play

a stage play (=a play in a theatre) 舞台剧

I occasionally write reviews of local stage plays.

我偶尔会写文章评论本地的舞台剧。

a TV/radio play (=a play written to be performed on TV/radio) 电视剧/广播剧

nThis horror story would make a good radio play.

a school play 校园剧

nI got a small part in the school play.

na Nativity play British EnglishBrE (=a play about the birth of Jesus, performed by children at Christmas)

She was chosen to play Mary in the nativity play.

COMMON ERRORSDon’t say ‘give a play’. Say put on a play.

不要说 ‘give a play’. 而要说 put on a play.

Examples from the Corpus

play• He chose to do this by re-writing the scene in the form of a script for a play.• After Troilus and Cressida almost any play is a relief, even the brothel scenes of Pericles.• His doubts only increased when he performed another job, midway to finally making up his mind about the Bolt play.• Make enough plays like that and nobody in the clubhouse will care if you ever say a word.• "Pygmalion" was one of Shaw's most famous plays.• This brings into play an area of training known as free sparring.• There needs to be a little more play in the fan belt for it to work right.• On the next play, Ervin caught a forty-yard pass to score a touchdown.• Parents need to understand the importance of play in a child's development.• There's a huge difference in the level of play from college to the NFL.• Episodes are based on dialogues, role play and cloze exercises, with the emphasis on building awareness of language appropriateness.• These characters can be used to start play very quickly, saving time for eager players!• The play is about two men on trial for murder.

at play• By observing children at play , teachers can understand more about how they see the world.• There are some important medical considerations at play in this tropical locale.

bring/put something into play• However, an unreasonable deviation brings s.12 into play.• They suggested that the impact be harder, which would automatically contract the probe mechanism bringing the latches into play.• I try to imagine the arguments another lawyer might bring into play.• But what really puts the company into play is the fact that its stock has basically tanked.• In so doing, this overrides the channel selector, bringing both channels into play at once.• Typically, some one has a bright idea and decides to put it into play.• Now a report from the Pensions Management Institute has suggested ways of changing the law to bring pension rights into play.• It may have the means, but be unwilling or unable to bring them into play at a particular time.• This time he was putting his heart into playing an angel in a Nativity play at the local church.

From Longman Business Dictionary

playplay1 /pleɪ/ verb [transitiveT]

1play the market(s)FINANCE if you play the market, you buy and sell shares on the stockmarket, especially to make a quick profit rather than as an investment for the future

Unless you can afford to lose money occasionally, it’s foolish to play the market in later life.

2play the system to use the rules of a system in a clever way in order to gain an advantage

These accountants know how to play the tax system.

3have money to play with to have extra money which you can use for a particular purpose

If you do get a severance check (=money you get from your employer when you lose your job) and land a job immediately, you’ll have some extra money to play with.

playplay2 noun [countableC]

1informalFINANCE an occasion when someone risks money on a financial market

In stock options, the biggest play of the day was in BP.

2in play journalismFINANCE if a company is in play, it may be bought in a TAKEOVER

The company has strongly denied it’s in play.

Origin play1

Old English plegan

play2

Old English plega

play1 verb

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