What is play?

More definitions of "play":

• (noun): A dramatic work intended for performance by actors on a stage.
  Synonyms: drama, dramatic play

• (verb): Pretend to be somebody in the framework of a game or playful activity.
  Example: "Let's play like I am mommy"; "Play cowboy and Indians"

• (noun): A weak and tremulous light.
  Example: "The play of light on the water"
  Synonyms: shimmer

• (verb): Engage in recreational activities rather than work; occupy oneself in a diversion.
  Example: "On weekends I play"
  Synonyms: recreate

• (verb): Cause to happen or to occur as a consequence.
  Example: "Play a joke"
  Synonyms: bring, work, wreak, make for

• (verb): Employ in a game or in a specific position.
  Example: "They played him on first base"

• (verb): Perform music on (a musical instrument).
  Example: "He plays the flute"; "Can you play on this old recorder?"

• (verb): Consider not very seriously.
  Synonyms: dally, trifle

• (verb): Bet or wager (money).
  Example: "He played $20 on the new horse"; "She plays the races"

• (verb): Discharge or direct or be discharged or directed as if in a continuous stream.
  Example: "Play water from a hose"; "The fountains played all day"

• (verb): Put (a card or piece) into play during a game, or act strategically as if in a card game.
  Example: "He is playing his cards close to his chest"; "The Democrats still have some cards to play before they will concede the electoral victory"

• (verb): Replay (as a melody).
  Example: "Play it again, Sam"
  Synonyms: spiel

• (verb): Play on an instrument.
  Example: "The band played all night long"

• (noun): Gay or light-hearted recreational activity for diversion or amusement.
  Example: "It was all done in play"
  Synonyms: frolic, romp, gambol, caper

• (noun): A theatrical performance of a drama.
  Example: "The play lasted two hours"

• (verb): Cause to move or operate freely within a bounded space.
  Example: "The engine has a wheel that is playing in a rack"

• (noun): (in games or plays or other performances) the time during which play proceeds.
  Example: "Rain stopped play in the 4th inning"
  Synonyms: playing period, period of play

• (verb): Perform on a stage or theater.
  Example: "She acts in this play"
  Synonyms: act, roleplay, playact

• (verb): Behave carelessly or indifferently.
  Example: "Play about with a young girl's affection"
  Synonyms: dally, toy, flirt

• (verb): Be performed.
  Example: "What's playing in the local movie theater?"; "'Cats' has been playing on Broadway for many years"

• (verb): Use or move.
  Example: "I had to play my queen"

• (noun): A preset plan of action in team sports.
  Example: "The coach drew up the plays for her team"

• (verb): Use to one's advantage.
  Example: "She plays on her clients' emotions"

• (noun): A deliberate coordinated movement requiring dexterity and skill.
  Example: "The runner was out on a play by the shortstop"
  Synonyms: maneuver, manoeuvre

• (verb): Play a role or part.
  Synonyms: act, represent

• (verb): Emit recorded sound.
  Example: "The tape was playing for hours"; "the stereo was playing Beethoven when I entered"

• (noun): A state in which action is feasible.
  Example: "The ball was still in play"; "insiders said the company's stock was in play"

• (verb): Perform on a certain location.
  Example: "The prodigy played Carnegie Hall at the age of 16"; "She has been playing on Broadway for years"

• (verb): Manipulate manually or in one's mind or imagination.
  Synonyms: toy, fiddle, diddle

• (verb): Stake on the outcome of an issue.
  Synonyms: bet, wager

• (verb): Cause to emit recorded sounds.
  Example: "Can you play my favorite record?"
  Synonyms: run

• (verb): Move or seem to move quickly, lightly, or irregularly.
  Example: "The spotlights played on the politicians"

• (noun): The activity of doing something in an agreed succession.
  Example: "It is still my play"
  Synonyms: turn

• (noun): Verbal wit (often at another's expense but not to be taken seriously).
  Synonyms: fun, sport

• (verb): Pretend to have certain qualities or state of mind.
  Synonyms: act, act as

• (verb): Contend against an opponent in a sport, game, or battle.
  Example: "Charlie likes to play Mary"
  Synonyms: meet, encounter, take on

• (noun): The removal of constraints.
  Example: "They gave full play to the artist's talent"
  Synonyms: free rein

• (verb): Behave in a certain way.
  Example: "Play safe"; "play it safe"; "play fair"

• (verb): Exhaust by allowing to pull on the line.
  Example: "Play a hooked fish"

• (noun): Movement or space for movement.
  Example: "There was too much play in the steering wheel"
  Synonyms: looseness

• (verb): Be received or accepted or interpreted in a specific way.
  Example: "This speech didn't play well with the American public"; "His remarks played to the suspicions of the committee"

• (noun): The act using a sword (or other weapon) vigorously and skillfully.
  Synonyms: swordplay

• (verb): Participate in games or sport.
  Example: "We played hockey all afternoon"; "play cards"; "Pele played for the Brazilian teams in many important matches"

• (verb): Be at play; be engaged in playful activity; amuse oneself in a way characteristic of children.
  Example: "The kids were playing outside all day"; "I used to play with trucks as a little girl"

• (verb): Act or have an effect in a specified way or with a specific effect or outcome.
  Example: "This factor played only a minor part in his decision"; "This development played into her hands"; "I played no role in your dismissal"

• (verb): Engage in an activity as if it were a game rather than take it seriously.
  Example: "Play the stockmarket"; "play with her feelings"
  Synonyms: toy

• (verb): Make bets.
  Example: "Play the reaces"; "play the casinos in Trouville"

• (noun): Play by children that is guided more by imagination than by fixed rules.
  Example: "Freud believed in the utility of play to a small child"
  Synonyms: child's play

• (noun): An attempt to get something.
  Example: "They made a futile play for power"
  Synonyms: bid

• (noun): The act of playing for stakes in the hope of winning (including the payment of a price for a chance to win a prize).
  Example: "There was heavy play at the blackjack table"
  Synonyms: gambling, gaming

• (verb): Shoot or hit in a particular manner.
  Example: "She played a good backhand last night"

Famous quotes containing the word play:

“This fellow is wise enough to play the fool,
And to do that well craves a kind of wit.
He must observe their mood on whom he jests,
The quality of persons, and the time,
Not, like the haggard, check at every feather
That comes before his eye. This is a practice
As full of labor as a wise man’s art.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)

“The child knows only that he engages in play because it is enjoyable. He isn’t aware of his need to play—a need which has its source in the pressure of unsolved problems. Nor does he know that his pleasure in playing comes from a deep sense of well-being that is the direct result of feeling in control of things, in contrast to the rest of his life, which is managed by his parents or other adults.”
—Bruno Bettelheim (20th century)

““Pop” Wyman ruled here with a firm but gentle hand; no drunken man was ever served at the bar; no married man was allowed to play at the tables; across the face of the large clock was written “Please Don’t Swear,” and over the orchestra appeared the gentle admonition, “Don’t Shoot the Pianist—He’s Doing His Damndest.””
—Administration in the State of Colo, U.S. public relief program. Colorado: A Guide to the Highest State (The WPA Guide to Colorado)