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

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 • May 27, 2025

“Things like that just don’t play fair in our mind.”

From Seattle Times • Oct. 4, 2023

Its job is to figure out how much cost companies that supply energy to households can pass along to consumers, while ensuring that the companies play fair.

From New York Times • Aug. 26, 2022

She probably believes that if the rest of the world would only line up and play fair with her, then she would receive the credit and stability she believes she deserves.

From Washington Post • May 10, 2022

Oh, did you expect me to play fair?

From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan

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