play along

verb

1. to cooperate (with), esp as a temporary measure

2. (tr) to manipulate as if in a game, esp for one's own advantage

   he played the widow along until she gave him her money

Idioms and Phrases

Cooperate or pretend to cooperate, as in They decided to play along with the robbers, at least for a while. [Colloquial; 1920s]

Example Sentences

As a teenager, he thought, “Wouldn’t it be great if the player piano could play along with a silent movie?”

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Business leaders who play along with Beijing call to mind author Upton Sinclair’s observation that “it is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.”

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The Trojans are 5-1 in a new era where even two-loss teams can qualify and, OK, just play along here for a sec.

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Colbert started playing along by unbuttoning his blazer and saying “f— that” to a signal that he only had a minute left in the segment.

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I decided to play along with Syndicate after taking advice from a senior BBC editor.

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