playboy

[ pley-boi ]

/ ˈpleɪˌbɔɪ /

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See synonyms for playboy on Thesaurus.com

noun

a man who pursues a life of pleasure without responsibility or attachments, especially one who is of comfortable means.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of playboy

First recorded in 1620–30; play + boy

Words nearby playboy

playback head, play ball, playbill, playbook, play both ends against the middle, playboy, playbroker, play by ear, play-by-play, play cat and mouse, play-centre

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use playboy in a sentence

At stake was the pride and bragging rights of the owner of the winning vessel, the equivalent of over $1 million today, and the making of history—though that last award was ranked the lowest in the eyes of the playboys who had cooked this scheme up.
The Hard-Drinking Playboys Who Made Transatlantic Sailing History|Allison McNearney|June 6, 2021|The Daily Beast
What Happened To Director Martin Brest By Matt Patches, Playboy He directed Beverly Hills Cop, Midnight Run and, yes, Gigli.
The Daily Beast’s Best Longreads, Dec 22-28, 2014|William Boot|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Back in 2001, that “definition” of female beauty basically fell into two categories: Playboy chic, or heroin chic.
Masters of Alt Sex: SuicideGirls Hits Puberty and Wants to Invade Your TV Set|Marlow Stern|December 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
VICTORIA VALENTINO (1970) The former Playboy Playmate met Cosby in 1970 at Café Figaro, a restaurant the comedian co-owned.
Bill Cosby’s Long List of Accusers (So Far): 18 Alleged Sexual Assault Victims Between 1965-2004|Marlow Stern|November 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Before she headlined the Playboy resorts, Joan Rivers was the funny gal in a spirited trio that played in hip nightclubs.
Joan Rivers: The Playboy Bunnies Weren’t Sluts!|Patty Farmer|November 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The Playboy publicity posters for the act called them “a spirited trio.”
Joan Rivers: The Playboy Bunnies Weren’t Sluts!|Patty Farmer|November 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Thus, for instance, is the question of Synge's Playboy handled.
Studies of Contemporary Poets|Mary C. Sturgeon
A Playboy is someone with power, too much time on his hands, and too little sense of a goal worth achieving.
The Players|Everett B. Cole
In The Playboy he seemed to be determined to write riotously, like a man straining after vitality.
Old and New Masters|Robert Lynd
Following the alluring drumstick, Playboy burst into the passage, towing me after him on the rope.
The London Mercury, Vol. I, Nos. 1-6, November 1919 to April 1920|Various
Well, you're the walking Playboy of the Western World, and that's the poor man you had divided to his breeches belt.
The Playboy of the Western World|J. M. Synge

British Dictionary definitions for playboy

playboy

/ (ˈpleɪˌbɔɪ) /

noun

a man, esp one of private means, who devotes himself to the pleasures of nightclubs, expensive holiday resorts, female company, etc

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

playboy

Origin of playboy

Words nearby playboy

Words related to playboy

How to use playboy in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for playboy