playbook

[pley-book]

noun

1. (in Elizabethan drama) the script of a play, used by the actors as an acting text.

2. a book containing the scripts of one or more plays.

3. Football.,  a notebook containing descriptions of all the plays and strategies used by a team, often accompanied by diagrams, issued to players for them to study and memorize before the season begins.

4. Informal.,  any plan or set of strategies, as for outlining a campaign in business or politics.

playbook

/ ˈpleɪˌbʊk /

noun

1. a book containing a range of possible set plays

2. a notional range of possible tactics in any sphere of activity

Word History and Origins

Origin of playbook¹

First recorded in 1525–35; play + book

Example Sentences

The company’s first quarter suggests it is making progress against its new playbook, Telsey said.

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China has mastered the art of delay diplomacy: when pressure mounts, it promises “dialogue and cooperation,” only to resume its mercantilist playbook once the threat recedes.

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Here is a guide to China’s playbook for flexing its export muscle.

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Strategy’s decline signals that investors are growing more cautious about Chairman Michael Saylor’s playbook for gobbling up more bitcoin, seemingly regardless of the price.

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And the president has returned to a familiar playbook of demanding the elimination of the Senate filibuster -- the 60-vote threshold for passing most legislation -- so Republicans can pass government funding themselves.

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Related Words

• article 
• book 
• copy 
• dialogue 
• libretto 
• manuscript 
• scenario 
• text