play God

phrase

usually disapproving
: to make decisions that have a very powerful and important effect on other people's lives
lawyers who play God with people's lives

Examples of play God in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Led by Oscar Issac and Jacob Elordi, the film is a heartfelt adaptation of Mary Shelley's classic novel, which tells the story of a scientist whose ego leads him to play God in an experiment that quickly goes wrong. — Billie Melissa, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Nov. 2025 The document asserted that attempts to alter an individual's immutable gender are ultimately misguided attempts to play God. — Gabriele Regalbuto, FOXNews.com, 21 Apr. 2025 Built from memory in the sublime — after both human and host-led society has crumbled — Westworld’s first fully functional host is now ready to play God. — Abbey White, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Aug. 2022 Bunbury Theatre presents the show about the evolution of the play God of Vengeance (Got fun nekome) by writer Sholem Aschg. — The Courier-Journal, 10 Aug. 2022 And my year was the only year that stood alone, where the audience got to play God, not the players inside the house. — Dalton Ross, EW.com, 20 June 2022 The visionary Mexican director casts Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein, the egotistical scientist who attempts to play God, bringing to life a tragic creature consumed by emptiness, played by Jacob Elordi. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019

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Cite this Entry

“Play God.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/play%20God. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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