play on

British  

verb

1. (adverb) to continue to play

2. Also: play upon.  (preposition) to exploit or impose upon (the feelings or weakness of another) to one's own advantage

3. (adverb) cricket to hit the ball into one's own wicket

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play on Idioms  

1. Also, play upon. Take advantage of or make use of for a desired effect, as in These health care ads are meant to play on our fears. This idiom uses play in the sense of “performing on an instrument.” Shakespeare used it in Hamlet (3:2): “You would play upon me; you would seem to know my stops.” [Late 1500s]

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Example Sentences

The brewery, several of whose beers play on celebrity names, launched John Lemon five years ago, because it seemed "cool", said Picard.

From Barron's • May 5, 2026

The name, a play on the prefix in the region and Trump’s names, started as a joke.

From Salon • Apr. 30, 2026

SoftBank has an 11% stake in OpenAI and also has made separate investments in AI data centers, making it essentially the purest play on OpenAI’s success or failure.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 28, 2026

Soon after he was spotted, a San Francisco-based Redditor named Des Tan called him Chonker, a play on chonky, which is slang for humorously chubby, and it stuck.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 26, 2026

Mine is just the French practice instrument Papa himself learned to play on as a child.

From "What the Night Sings" by Vesper Stamper

Related Words

• adopt
• apply
• employ
• handle
• manage
• operate
• practice
• run
• spend
• utilize
• wield
• work