play out

verb

played out; playing out; plays out

transitive verb

1

a

: to perform to the end

play out a role

b

: use up, finish

play out the season

2

: unreel, unfold

… played out a length of line.

—Gordon Webber

intransitive verb

1

: to become spent or exhausted

a style that has played out

2

: develop, unfold

see how things play out

Synonyms of play out

• spend
• consume
• drain
• exhaust
• draw down
• run out of
• use up
• reduce
• absorb
• use

Examples of play out in a Sentence

we've finally played out the leftovers from that huge holiday meal

Recent Examples on the Web

The bottom line Silver could realistically hit or even surpass the $200 per ounce record this March, giving current investors reason to celebrate and prospective ones an urgent push to get started before that plays out. —Matt Richardson, CBS News, 6 Mar. 2026

That keeps us encouraged about the long-term opportunity once the online dynamic is fully played out. —Jeff Marks, CNBC, 6 Mar. 2026

Virginia’s Supreme Court ordered twice to let the election proceed in the face of legal challenges to how Democrats passed the amendment through the legislature, although litigation continues to play out. —Oren Oppenheim, ABC News, 6 Mar. 2026

The reality of this horizontal scaling is currently playing out in the form of two very different deals. —Lin Cherry, Fortune, 6 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Rhymes for play out

• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout
• checkout
• closeout
• cutout
• devout
• dropout

Kids Definition

play out

verb

1

: to perform to the end

2

a

: to use up or finish

b

: to become exhausted : tire

3

: unreel, unfold