play host to

idiomatic phrase

: to serve as a host for (someone or something)

Each year, the city plays host to the film festival for one week.

As travel to the Third World has expanded, so, too, has concern about the damage wrought by mass tourism on the people and places that play host to wandering North Americans and Europeans.

—Ira Silver

St. John's meets No. 3-ranked Duke and the Big East rival Miami on the road, and will play host to No. 4 Syracuse, No. 13 Connecticut and surging Seton Hall at the Garden.

—Jon Drape

The grasslands play host to [=provide a home for] long-billed curlews and sage grouse, and eagles, osprey and coyotes scavenge the area.

—Kay Clark

Examples of play host to in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Nigeria now plays host to multiple armed groups, both homegrown and cross-border. —Pelumi Salako, Los Angeles Times, 6 Feb. 2026

Up next The Kings will play host to the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday. —Jason Anderson, Sacbee.com, 5 Feb. 2026

This marks the second time the venue has played host to the big game; the last time was Super Bowl 50 in 2015. —Monica Garske, USA Today, 5 Feb. 2026

The Mavericks were then scheduled to hit the road Thursday for a game against the Tulsa Oilers before returning right back home Friday to play host to Tulsa. —The Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 5 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1837, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for play host to

• amadou
• avenue
• ballyhoo
• baraboo
• barbecue
• barbeque
• bugaboo
• cabildo
• caribou
• cockatoo
• detinue
• devalue