play for
Idioms-
Take part for a particular reason, as in We're not playing for money, just for fun . A special usage of this idiom is play for laughs , that is, with the aim of arousing laughter.
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play someone for . Manage someone for one's own ends, make a fool of, dupe or cheat. For example, I resent your playing me for a fool , or He suddenly found out she'd been playing him for a sucker . This usage employs play in the sense of “exhaust a hooked fish,” that is, manage it on the line so that it exhausts itself. [Mid-1600s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Oklahoma coach Brent Venables, meanwhile, recently raised questions about the job security of John Mateer, the turnover-prone passer earning an estimated $1.5 million to play for the Sooners.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
In the Regional League Northeast, almost every game has begun with a delay as players have simply refused to play for the first minute.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
What followed was a trailblazing career spanning more than two decades, which has seen her play for the elite Kingston Diamonds based in Hull, and the Great Britain women's national team.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
But it isn’t just a real-estate play for Dutch Bros.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Miss Garnder said if I keep on getting A’s on my composition, she might let me write a play for graduation.
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
