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

“The Traitors” is a social game, so when Funches’ early big swing at another contestant misses terribly, the rest of the players instantly ostracize him.

From Salon

The player maintained his innocence and after his acquittal, said he could "play football again with a smile on my face."

From Barron's

Sterling had reportedly been kept apart from the rest of the Chelsea players this season, arriving and leaving at a different time to the squad and using a different building.

From Barron's

She is undoubtedly the favourite - but three fellow top-15 players are looking to spoil the party.

From BBC

Memory stocks were seeing a further boost on Wednesday, as upbeat commentary from two industry players suggested that booming demand for storage products could deliver financial benefits over an extended period.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

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