interplay

American  

[in-ter-pley, in-ter-pley, in-ter-pley] / ˈɪn tərˌpleɪ, ˌɪn tərˈpleɪ, ˈɪn tərˌpleɪ /

noun

• interplays
  plural

1. reciprocal relationship, action, or influence.

   the interplay of plot and character.

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verb (used without object)

1. to exert influence on each other.

interplay British  

/ ˈɪntəˌpleɪ /

noun

1. reciprocal and mutual action and reaction, as in circumstances, events, or personal relations

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• interplays
  plural

Etymology

Origin of interplay

First recorded in 1860–65; inter- + play

Explanation

Interplay is a kind of back-and-forth interaction in which each side affects the other. A beautiful piece of music has the perfect interplay between melody, rhythm, and harmony. You can think of interplay as if you're watching an actual play on a stage: the way two characters communicate, whether they're cooperating or clashing with each other, is a kind of interplay. This word is often used in a less concrete way, so you might hear a sociologist talk about the interplay between race and class or a film critic discuss the interplay between violence and comedy in a movie.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

interplay interplays

But it’s his interplay with the few hundred folks in the room that elevates the recording to a deeply moving piece of art.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026

"The observation of multiple symmetry-protected nodal lines in a simple elemental ferromagnet is therefore highly unexpected and establishes cobalt as a model system for studying the interplay between topology and magnetism."

From Science Daily ● Jun. 5, 2026

It leads to this interplay between the shadow docket and the merits docket.

From Slate ● Jun. 1, 2026

And a recent factor has been the interplay between Home Office attempts to clear the backlog of people awaiting asylum decisions, and Scotland's approach to homelessness.

From BBC ● Apr. 27, 2026

Bailey notes his place in the middle of an article that is comparing the interplay of light and shadow in a particular tent to Indonesian puppet theater before putting the book down.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

"The goal is eventually to even study the interplays of different signaling pathways simultaneously."

From Science Daily ● Apr. 23, 2024

From utilitarian details that ground regal aesthetics in the contemporary to surreal interplays of form and texture, the collections celebrated the industry’s ability to innovate while honoring its past.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 28, 2024

The set designer, Varvara Timofeeva, and the costume designer, Marie-Thérèse Jossen, are developing sleek, minimalist interplays of black, white, gray and blood red.

From New York Times ● May 25, 2023

The design reflects the traditional hand-crafted bowls found across the Arab and Islamic world while interplays of light mirror the fanar lanterns of the region.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 15, 2022

There are subtle interplays of delicate forces and reactions from environment which no one can measure.

From Our Foreigners A Chronicle of Americans in the Making by Samuel Peter Orth

Related Words

• give-and-take