play to

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 Chiefs ran a man-beating play to open the scoring on the first play on the second quarter, leaving him wide open; and Walker turned that aforementioned screen pass into a 25-yard two drives later. — Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 9 Nov. 2026

The Rebels opened with a run play that gained just 1 yard and proceeded to go three-and-out, then UGA’s Nate Frazier ripped off a 46-yard run on the Bulldogs’ first offensive play to spark an opening touchdown drive. — Mike Griffith, AJC.com, 8 Nov. 2026

Blount drew up a play to inbound to forward Jose Roberto Tanchyn, who had two options – Jevon Hill in the near corner and Stromer running off a screen from the opposite corner. — Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Nov. 2026

The two clubs played to a scoreless draw in Ohio to begin March. — ABC News, 7 Nov. 2026

Rhymes for play to

• accrue
• ado
• ainu
• aircrew
• airscrew
• anew
• askew
• baboo
• babu
• bamboo
• beaucoup
• bijou