play with

verb

played with; playing with; plays with

1

: to move or handle (something) with one's hands or fingers often without thinking

Stop playing with that pen and pay attention to what I'm saying.

2

: to handle, change, or deal with (something) in a careless way

I played with the radio for a while but couldn't get it to work.

It's important to teach your children not to play with guns/fire/matches.

Don't play with my heart/emotions.

You have to take this seriously. You're playing with people's lives!

3

: to think about (something) briefly and not very seriously

I played with the idea of moving to Chicago but ended up staying in New York.

Examples of play with in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Other potential targets have not been confirmed, but Miami has been strongly linked to veteran NBA forward Khris Middleton, who played with soon-to-be-new-Heat-forward Giannis Antetekounmpo in Milwaukee. — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 29 June 2026

Love is still playing with longtime touring band members, including at the Hollywood Bowl on July 2, 3 and 4. — Noah Haggerty, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2026

The two sides ended group play with a scoreless draw in front of 64,478 fans at Miami Stadium. — Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 27 June 2026

Meanwhile, a flashback, set vaguely in the Before Times, presents a girl playing with the ragdoll Jessie, a cowgirl and aspirant sheriff, voiced enthusiastically and most capably by Joan Cusack. — Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 27 June 2026