play at

verb

played at; playing at; plays at

1

: to do (something) in a way that is not serious

They were only playing at trying to fix the problem.

2

chiefly British : to play by pretending to be (someone or something)

She liked to play at doctors and nurses as a child.

—often used in the phrase play at being (something)

boys playing at being soldiers

3

British

—used to say in an annoyed way that one does not know the reason for someone's behavior

What is he playing at?

Examples of play at in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Watson has formed a solid duo with Central Arkansas transfer Landen Chambers, who played at Fossil Ridge High School in the Keller school district. — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 Sep. 2026

Jurkovec played his final season of college football at the University of Pittsburgh in 2023 after a standout high school career at Pine-Richland and time spent playing at Notre Dame and Boston College. — Mike Darnay, CBS News, 21 Sep. 2026

Spending that much should get you something that can play at 1080p high. — Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 21 Sep. 2026

The Stories world premiered at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival in 2025, and then went on to win the Golden Tanit for Best Film at the Carthage Film Festival and also play at the Red Sea International Film Festival last December. — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 21 Sep. 2026

Rhymes for play at

• begat
• bobcat
• chitchat
• doormat
• ducat
• eclat
• format
• hazmat
• muskrat
• nonfat
• polecat
• thereat