play along
Britishverb
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to cooperate (with), esp as a temporary measure
-
(tr) to manipulate as if in a game, esp for one's own advantage
he played the widow along until she gave him her money
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“I think that some of the hemisphere is willing to play along with it because the hemisphere has issues, including security issues, where the U.S. can be of assistance,” Bosworth said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 21, 2026
The posts allow other Polymarket users to play along.
From Barron's ● Feb. 27, 2026
“Tony doesn’t suffer fools gladly, and he won’t play along with the kind of thing where you hang out with the right industry people,” says Hues.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 10, 2026
When useful idiots play along, the hypocrisy is double: Perpetrators pretend to be humane, and apologists pretend to believe them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 9, 2026
“He denies it all quite convincingly and the thing is, he expects me to play along with him, you know, pretend it never happened,” he said.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
