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• player
  player

  noun

  a person or thing that plays.
• Player
  Player

  noun

  Gary, born 1935, South African golfer.

player

¹ American  

[pley-er] / ˈpleɪ ər /

noun

players plural

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

Derived Forms

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

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• players
  plural

Etymology

Origin of player

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

Explanation

If you like to play anything at all, you’re a player. If you take part in a game or sport, you're a player. If you're a big flirt, you’re a player. Like the kazoo? You’re a kazoo player. Play on! Some players play cards or tennis, and others play roles in theater productions. You could also call a musician a player, like a piano player or a flute player. Vital or influential people (or groups) are sometimes described this way too: "The president called a meeting of all the biggest political players." And finally, there are inanimate players, like music or radio players, or an MP3 player.

Example Sentences

Freeman’s rapid ascent includes being named MLS Young Player of the Year in 2025, earning a move to Spanish club Villareal, and joining the national team a year ago.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 20, 2026

Only Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are in that exclusive set of winning all four of the men's majors.

From BBC • Jun. 18, 2026

Player covers their mouth in a confrontational situation: A referee can send the player off.

From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026

Do tell: Were you shook by the Rams’ move Monday to acquire Garrett, the five-time All-Pro, a two-time Defensive Player of the Year and all-time single-season sacks leader?

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 3, 2026

Then he slapped the Two Player button and the joust began.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Related Words

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