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

Cadena played at El Dorado High before going to Ohio State and TCU. —Oc Register, 31 May 2026

Hip-checked by Seymour on the play at the plate, Neto remained on the dirt for several minutes before athletic trainers helped him to his feet. —Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2026

City have been in the market for a left-back, announcing on Friday that Leila Ouahabi, who primarily played at left-back but also featured at left centre-back in head coach Andree Jeglertz’s first season, will leave the club when her contract expires this summer. —Megan Feringa, New York Times, 31 May 2026

Where would Bernardo Silva play at FC Barcelona? —Tom Sanderson, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026

Rhymes for play at

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