play fair

Idioms  

1. Behave honestly and honorably, obey the rules, as in Not every supplier we deal with plays fair, or We can't just leave them to find their own way back—that's not playing fair. Although this idiom conjures up playing by the rules in some game or sport, it actually has been used in this figurative way since the mid-1400s. Also see play the game.

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Example Sentences

Can McLaren continue to play fair and stop Verstappen?

From BBC

Do McLaren have to face the truth of F1 now - that if you want to win, you can't always play fair?

From BBC

Her father’s second-in-command, the handsome Jack Dean, insists family members play fair in obeying their father’s will.

From Los Angeles Times

The media doesn’t always play fair when it scents a scalp.

From BBC

They tend not to play fair, and “Good Girl’s Guide” is no exception.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

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