play to
phrasal 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
On third-and-1 with seven seconds left, Schakel took the snap and tried to spike the ball, which would have stopped the clock and given his team one final play to go for the win.
—
Alex Valdes, New York Times, 9 Nov. 2025
Arizona scored on a 24-yard run by Quincy Craig with just 39 seconds to play to complete a comeback from a 10-point deficit and upend the Jayhawks 24-20 on Saturday in Tucson, Arizona.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 9 Nov. 2025
More than 65,000 other Fantasy 5 tickets sold in California also won prizes ranging from free plays to $400, the lottery said.
—Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 9 Nov. 2025
The Olympians received the second-half kickoff and needed just four plays to take the lead.
—Dan Arritt, Oc Register, 8 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for play to
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Alex Valdes, New York Times, 9 Nov. 2025
Arizona scored on a 24-yard run by Quincy Craig with just 39 seconds to play to complete a comeback from a 10-point deficit and upend the Jayhawks 24-20 on Saturday in Tucson, Arizona.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 9 Nov. 2025
More than 65,000 other Fantasy 5 tickets sold in California also won prizes ranging from free plays to $400, the lottery said.
—Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 9 Nov. 2025
The Olympians received the second-half kickoff and needed just four plays to take the lead.
—Dan Arritt, Oc Register, 8 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for play to
Cite this Entry
“Play to.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/play%20to. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.
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