fair play

noun

: equitable or impartial treatment : justice

Examples of fair play in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Make sure the topper is small enough so the bottom rug gets fair play—meaning the smaller one is about two-thirds the size of its counterpart. Marisa Spyker, Southern Living, 2 Aug. 2023 The top 100 journalists who cover men’s soccer, as well as the top 50 journalists who cover women’s soccer, from FIFA’s (International Federation of Association Football) world nation rankings will vote for their favorite players in individual performance, team performance and fair play categories. Rudie Obias, Variety, 28 Oct. 2023 The idea that international sport is a place where sportsmanship and fair play rule the day is hopelessly naive and outdated when that world is awash in cheating scandals involving performance-enhancing drugs and gambling, corruption and bribery. Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2023 The rules that govern fair play are voted on, agreed to and expected to be upheld by all NCAA member schools. Teddy Grant, ABC News, 23 Aug. 2023 Student athletes should be put in a position to best reflect their school's commitment to inclusive, fair play. Natasha Dye, Peoplemag, 27 Sep. 2023 At the end of each play session, the community youth mentor engages the players in discussions about fair play, school attendance, and other age-specific topics. Anne Pinto-Rodrigues, The Christian Science Monitor, 5 July 2023 Consider it as an investment in human capital and a sign of fair play. Curt Steinhorst, Forbes, 20 Apr. 2023 Messi rejected a lucrative offer in Saudi Arabia and reportedly considered going back to Barcelona, but couldn't because of the Spanish league's fair play rules. Harold Maass, The Week, 8 June 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fair play.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1500, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of fair play was circa 1500

Dictionary Entries Near fair play

Cite this Entry

“Fair play.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fair%20play. Accessed 30 Nov. 2023.

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