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

When Washington plays at Philadelphia, Drew Stevens will almost certainly become the eighth. — Barry Svrluga, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026

Kiffin is pushing to let the athletes regain their eligibility to play at the college level. — Joel Mathis, TheWeek, 8 Sep. 2026

The full list of films playing at the 2026 Downtown Festival is listed below. — Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 8 Sep. 2026

Their first game of the season is also their first game in Kansas City, one of eight played at Arrowhead Stadium. — Joseph Hernandez, Kansas City Star, 8 Sep. 2026

Rhymes for play at

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