make a play for

idiom

: to try to get (someone or something)

She made a play for the job, but she didn't get it.

: to try to start a romantic or sexual relationship with (someone)

He made a play for her.

Examples of make a play for in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Indeed, even as deaths from COVID-19 mounted and the economy slid deeper into recession, many of Bolsonaro’s supporters were urging him to make a play for even greater power. —

Brian Winter, Foreign Affairs, 11 Aug. 2020 Apollo was the latest to make a play for Paramount, getting in line behind Ellison’s Skydance, David Zaslav’s Warner Bros. Discovery, and Byron Allen’s Allen Media Group. —

Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 19 Apr. 2024 Is whatever left enough to make a play for another star in his prime? Because make no mistake. —

Morten Stig Jensen, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024 The company based in New York City is the latest to make a play for Paramount, getting in line behind David Zaslav’s Warner Bros. Discovery, Byron Allen’s Allen Media Group and David Ellison’s Skydance Media with help from private equity firm RedBird Capital. —

Christi Carras, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2024 See all Example Sentences for make a play for

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

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“Make a play for.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/make%20a%20play%20for. Accessed 27 Jul. 2024.

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