play it by ear

To deal with a situation as it develops without advance planning

set by the ears

To set violently against each other

tickle the ear of

To gratify, pander to the taste of or flatter

turn a deaf ear

To refuse to listen (to)

up to one's ears in

Deeply involved in

walls have ears

Someone may be listening

wet behind the ears (informal)

Naïve, immature

play /plā/

intransitive verb (playˈing; played)

1. To engage in pleasurable activity
2. To perform acts not part of the immediate business of life but in mimicry or rehearsal or in display
3. To amuse oneself
4. To sport
5. To make sport
6. To trifle
7. To behave without seriousness
8. To behave amorously or sexually
9. To take part in a game
10. (with for) to compete on the side of
11. To proceed with the game, perform one's part in turn
12. To deliver a ball, etc, in the course of a game
13. To co-operate (informal)
14. To perform on a musical instrument
15. To produce or emit music
16. (of music) to come forth
17. To act a part
18. To move about irregularly, lightly, or freely
19. To have some freedom of movement
20. To flicker, flutter, shimmer, pass through rapid alternations
21. To appear faintly and fleetingly (usu with round)
22. To move in, discharge, or direct a succession, stream, or shower (eg of water, light, waves, or missiles)
23. To contend with weapons (archaic)
24. To operate (obsolete)
25. To wield a weapon
26. To gamble
27. To have a holiday (Shakespeare; also Scot)
28. To be off work (N Eng)

transitive verb

1. To perform
2. To ply, wield
3. To cause or allow to play
4. To set in opposition, pit
5. To send, let off, or discharge in succession or in a stream or shower
6. To give a limited freedom of movement to
7. Hence, to manage
8. To allow (a fish) to tire itself by its struggles to get away
9. To engage in (a game or recreative mimicry)
10. To proceed through (a game, part of a game, or an aggregate of games)
11. To stake or risk in play
12. To gamble on (informal)
13. To bring into operation in a game, as by striking (a ball), by throwing (a card) on the table, by moving (a chess piece)
14. To compete against in a game or sport
15. To compete on the side of (with for)
16. To act (eg comedy or a named play)
17. To act the part of, in a play or in real life
18. To act or perform in (eg a circuit of theatres or halls or a town, etc)
19. To pretend in fun
20. To perform music on
21. To perform (a tune, etc) on a musical instrument
22. To cause (a radio, stereo system, etc) to emit sound
23. To lead, bring, send, render, or cause to be by playing
24. (reflexive) to amuse (oneself; obsolete and Scot)
25. (reflexive) to waste time, fool around (informal)

noun

1. Activity
2. Operation
3. Action of wielding
4. Light fluctuating movement or change
5. Some freedom of movement, as opposed to absolute tightness or tautness
6. Scope
7. Recreative activity
8. Display of animals in courtship
9. Amusement
10. Fun
11. Dalliance
12. A game (Shakespeare)
13. The playing of a game
14. Manner of playing
15. Procedure or policy in a game
16. Holiday (Shakespeare and Scot)
17. A fair or festival (dialect)
18. Being off work (N Eng)
19. Gambling
20. A drama or dramatic performance
21. Manner of dealing, as in fair play (figurative)

playˈable adjective

Capable (by nature or by the rules of the game) of being played, or of being played on

playˈer noun

1. A person who plays
2. A person participating in or skilled at esp a game or sport
3. An actor
4. A trifler
5. An instrumental performer
6. A mechanism for playing a musical instrument
7. An apparatus for playing records, etc, as in record player, CD player
8. (in Northern Ireland) a terrorist, esp one who is young and unknown
9. Anyone who has an interest in and who plays a part in, eg formulating a policy, taking a decision, etc (informal)

playˈful adjective

1. Full of fun, frolicsome, frisky
2. High-spirited, humorous

playˈfully adverb

playˈfulness noun

playˈlet noun

A short play

playˈsome adjective

Playful

playˈ-act intransitive verb

playˈ-acting noun

1. Performance of plays
2. Pretence

play action noun (American football)

An attempt to disguise a passing play by simulating a running play

playˈ-actor or playˈ-actress noun (usu derogatory)

Professional actor or actress

playˈback noun

1. The act of reproducing a recording of sound or visual material, esp immediately after it is made
2. A device for doing this (see also play back below)

playˈbill noun

A bill announcing a play

playˈbook noun

A printed play or book of plays

playˈ-box noun (old)

A box for toys and other valued possessions, esp in a boarding school

playˈboy or (rare) playˈgirl noun

1. A light-hearted irresponsible person, esp rich, leisured and pleasure-seeking
2. A child-actor (archaic)

Playˈbus® noun

A bus equipped with facilities for children's play, driven to districts where no adequate playgroup facilities are available

playˈ-by-playˈ noun (N American)

A running commentary on a sporting event (also adjective)

play date noun (chiefly N American)

An arrangement between adults for their children to meet to play together

playˈ-day noun

A holiday

playˈ-debt noun

A debt incurred in gambling

playedˈ-out adjective

1. Exhausted
2. Used up
3. No longer good for anything

player piano see under pianoforte

playˈfellow noun

A playmate

playgirl see playboy above.

playˈ-gōer noun

Someone who habitually attends the theatre

playˈ-gōing noun

playˈground noun

1. An outdoor area for playing in, esp one connected with a school
2. A place of recreation
3. A holiday region

playˈgroup noun

An informal, sometimes voluntarily run group having morning or afternoon sessions attended by preschool children sometimes with their parents or carers, for creative and co-operative play

playˈhouse noun

1. A theatre
2. A child's toy house, usu big enough for a child to enter

playing card noun

One of a pack (usu of fifty-two cards, divided into four suits) used in playing games

playing field noun

A grass-covered space set apart, marked out, and kept in order for games (a level or flat playing field (informal) fair competition)

playˈleader noun

A person trained to supervise and organize children's play in a playground, etc

playˈlist noun

Those recordings selected to be broadcast regularly by a radio station

transitive verb

To include on a playlist

playˈmaker noun (sport)

A member of a team who is skilled at initiating moves that might lead to a score

playˈ-mare noun (Scot)

A hobby-horse, as in the old morris-dance

playˈmate noun

A companion in play, esp child's play

playˈ-off noun

1. A game to decide a tie, a championship, promotion, etc
2. A game between the winners of other competitions
3. See also play off below

play on words or play upon words noun

A pun or other manipulation of words depending on their sound

playˈpen noun

An enclosure within which a young child may safely play

playˈroom noun

A room for children to play in

playˈschool noun

A nursery school or playgroup

playˈslip noun

A form on which a participant in a lottery draw indicates his or her chosen numbers

playˈ-spell noun

A time allowed for play

playˈsuit noun

A set of clothes for a child or woman, usu shorts and a top or one-piece, for sunbathing, relaxing, etc

playˈthing noun

1. A toy
2. A person or thing treated as a toy

playˈtime noun

1. A time for play
2. (in schools) a set period for playing, usu out of doors

playˈ-way noun

The educational use of play

playˈ-world noun

An imaginary world feigned in play

playˈwright or playˈ-writer noun

A dramatist

bring, call or come into play

To bring, call or come into exercise, operation or use

hold in play (or archaic hold play)

To keep occupied, esp to gain time or detain

in (or out of) play

(of a ball, etc) in (or not in) a position to be played

make a play for (informal)

1. To try to get
2. To attempt to seduce

make great play with or of

1. To make a lot of
2. To treat or talk of as very important

make play

To keep things going, push on with the game

play about

To behave irresponsibly, not seriously

play along

(with with) to co-operate or agree with someone, usu temporarily

play a part

1. (with in) to be instrumental in, help in doing something
2. To act a theatrical role

play around

1. To play about
2. To have amorous affairs with men or women other than one's partner

play at

1. To engage in the game of
2. To make a pretence of
3. To practise without seriousness

play back

To play (a sound or video recording) that has just been made

play ball (informal)

To co-operate

play by ear see under ear¹(see also play it by ear below).

play catch-up

To make great efforts to become up to date or draw level in a competition

play down

To treat (something) as not very important or probable, esp less so than it is

play fair

(sometimes with with) to act honestly

play false (sometimes with with; archaic)

To act dishonestly towards or betray someone

play fast and loose

To act in a shifty, inconsistent, and reckless fashion

play fine

(in billiards) to strike the object ball near the edge (as opposed to play full, to strike it nearer the middle than the edge)

play for safety

To play safe

play for time

To delay action or decision in the hope or belief that conditions will become more favourable later

play hard to get

To make a show of unwillingness to co-operate with a view to strengthening one's position

play havoc or hell with

1. To upset, disorganize
2. To damage

play into the hands of

To act so as to give, usu unintentionally, an advantage to

play it (informal; usu followed by an adj)

To behave in or manage a particular situation in a stated way, as in play it cool

play it by ear

To improvise a plan of action to meet the situation as it develops (see also play by ear under ear¹)

play it (or one's cards) close to the (or one's) chest

To be secretive about one's actions or intentions in a particular matter

play off

1. To manipulate so as to counteract
2. To set (one person against another)
3. To take part in a play-off
4. To play from the tee (golf)
5. To have as a handicap (golf)
6. To toss off (Shakespeare)
7. To bring off (eg a hoax)

play on

1. To strike the ball onto one's own wicket (cricket)
2. (also play upon) to direct one's efforts to the exciting of, work upon (feelings, emotions, etc)

play out

1. To play to the end
2. To wear out, to exhaust
3. To act out

play safe

To take no risks

play the field (informal)

To spread one's interests, affections or efforts over a wide range of subjects, people, activities, etc, rather than concentrating on any single one

play the game

To act strictly honourably

play up

1. To strike up, begin the music
2. To redouble one's efforts, play more vigorously
3. To show up well in a crisis or emergency
4. To give (esp undue) prominence to, or to boost
5. To fool
6. To function faultily (informal)
7. To behave unco-operatively (informal)
8. (of an impaired part of the body) to give one trouble or pain (informal)

play upon see play on above.

play up to

1. To act so as to afford opportunities to (another actor)
2. To flatter

play with

1. To play in the company of, or as partner or opponent to
2. To dally with
3. To stimulate (the genitals of), to masturbate (oneself or someone else)