play to
phrasal verb
played to; playing to; plays to
1
: to behave or perform in a particular way for (someone or something) in order to get approval or attention
He didn't mean what he was saying. He was just playing to the crowd.
He loves publicity and plays to the cameras every chance he gets.
2
: to make use of (something)
a film that plays to stereotypes of housewives
In his latest album, he once again plays to his strengths as a classical musician.
Examples of play to in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Arizona Coyotes have two games to play to close out the 2023-24 season.
—
The Arizona Republic, 14 Apr. 2024
Hunter Dickinson followed with a 3 with 4:13 to play to give the Jayhawks a 7-point advantage.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 8 Apr. 2024
Korda won four of the first seven holes at Leopard Creek and wrapped up victory with three holes left to play to claim her 12th LPGA Tour victory and extend her winning streak.
—Jack Bantock, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
The post–October 7 strategic landscape in the Middle East is one that was largely created by Iran and that plays to its strengths.
—Suzanne Maloney, Foreign Affairs, 8 Apr. 2024
His obstructionism, his showdowns with generals, his confrontations with the Biden administration—all are focused on that end, which means preserving his far-right coalition and playing to his hard-core nationalist base.
—Anshel Pfeffer, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2024
Memorial Park is a Par 70 and plays to 7,425 yards for the 2024 Houston Open.
—Jay Ginsbach, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
Nobody else stepped forward to make enough plays to push the Cougars over the top.
—Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 21 Mar. 2024
For example, seek to understand each partner's strengths and weaknesses, so each party can play to their strengths.
—Kate Vitasek, Forbes, 30 Mar. 2024
The Arizona Republic, 14 Apr. 2024
Hunter Dickinson followed with a 3 with 4:13 to play to give the Jayhawks a 7-point advantage.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 8 Apr. 2024
Korda won four of the first seven holes at Leopard Creek and wrapped up victory with three holes left to play to claim her 12th LPGA Tour victory and extend her winning streak.
—Jack Bantock, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
The post–October 7 strategic landscape in the Middle East is one that was largely created by Iran and that plays to its strengths.
—Suzanne Maloney, Foreign Affairs, 8 Apr. 2024
His obstructionism, his showdowns with generals, his confrontations with the Biden administration—all are focused on that end, which means preserving his far-right coalition and playing to his hard-core nationalist base.
—Anshel Pfeffer, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2024
Memorial Park is a Par 70 and plays to 7,425 yards for the 2024 Houston Open.
—Jay Ginsbach, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
Nobody else stepped forward to make enough plays to push the Cougars over the top.
—Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 21 Mar. 2024
For example, seek to understand each partner's strengths and weaknesses, so each party can play to their strengths.
—Kate Vitasek, Forbes, 30 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'play to.' 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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Cite this Entry
“Play to.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/play%20to. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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