player

¹ American  

[pley-er] / ˈpleɪ ər /

noun

1. a person or thing that plays.

2. a person who takes part or is skilled in some game or sport.

3. a person who plays parts on the stage; an actor.

4. a performer on a musical instrument.

5. Informal. a participant, as in a conference or business deal.

6. a machine or piece of software that reproduces sound or images: a videodisc player;

   a record player;

   a videodisc player;

   a digital media player.

7. a gambler.

8. Slang. a person engaged in illicit or illegal activity, especially a pimp.

9. a mechanical device by which a musical instrument, as a player piano, is played automatically.

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Player ² American  

[pley-er] / ˈpleɪ ər /

noun

1. Gary, born 1935, South African golfer.

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player ¹ British  

/ ˈpleɪə /

noun

1. a person who participates in or is skilled at some game or sport

2. a person who plays a game or sport professionally

3. a person who plays a musical instrument

4. an actor

5. informal a participant, esp a powerful one, in a particular field of activity

   a leading city player

6. See record player

7. the playing mechanism in a Pianola

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Player ² British  

/ ˈpleɪə /

noun

1. Gary (ˈɡærɪ). born 1935, South African golfer: winner of nine major championships (1959–78), including the British Open (1959, 1968, 1974)

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Other Word Forms

• counterplayer noun
• nonplayer noun
• self-player noun
• superplayer noun

Etymology

Origin of player

before 1000; Middle English pleyer, Old English plegere. See play, -er ¹

Example Sentences

She is the only player in league history to win both the MVP and Rookie of the Year in the same season.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 4, 2026

While by no means the first portable digital music player when it was released in 2001, the iPod is one of "Apple's most iconic products" argued Craig Pickerell of The Apple Geek.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

"Always my wish is that Rodri could stay as long as possible in this club because he is an incredible, top player but the life of everyone is everyone's."

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026

"It is the only alliance that, until now, had a major player behaving like a benevolent hegemon, one that did not impose its actions on others by force," he told AFP.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

Craps offered the player the illusion of control—after all, he rolled the dice—and a surface complexity that masked its deeper idiocy.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Related Words

• athlete
• competitor
• member
• opponent
• participant
• pro
• professional
• rookie