playoff

1 of 2

noun

play·​off ˈplā-ˌȯf 

variants or less commonly play-off

1

: a final contest, series of contests, or period of play to determine the winner between contestants or teams that have tied

a golf tournament decided by an 18-hole playoff

a sudden-death playoff

2

: a series of contests played after the end of the regular season to determine a championship

—usually plural except when used before another noun

Will you watch the playoffs?

got tickets to a playoff game

play off

2 of 2

verb

played off; playing off; plays off

transitive verb

1

a

: to set in opposition for one's own gain

—used with against

They have been playing him off against his old enemies.

b

: to set in contrast

chose a sweet wine to play off the sharp cheese

2

: to complete the playing of (an interrupted contest)

3

: to break (a tie) by a playoff

Examples of playoff in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

William Karlsson got Vegas closer with his third goal of the playoffs, while Brett Howden, adding to his case for the Conn Smythe Trophy, scored his 14th to tie it all up at three. —Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 10 June 2026

Canes hop on the Bus-si Bussi became the third goalie since the 1967-68 expansion to make his first career playoff start in a Stanley Cup Final — and the first to win. —Michael Russo, New York Times, 10 June 2026

Verb

Phongam plays off Jittri’s steam-rolling ambition to electrifying results in a rather addictive Thai thriller series that throws a lot of story at ya. —Randy Myers, Mercury News, 11 June 2026

Speaking of Li Jun Li, both of you play off each other so well as femme fatale and hardboiled detective. —Destiny Jackson, Deadline, 11 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1895, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1736, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for playoff

• ashraf
• checkoff
• cutoff
• falloff
• handoff
• kickoff
• layoff
• liftoff
• markoff
• markov
• payoff
• runoff

Kids Definition

play-off

1 of 2 noun

ˈplā-ˌȯf

1

: a final contest or series of contests to break a tie

2

: a series of contests played after the end of the regular season to determine a championship

—often used in plural

play off

2 of 2 verb

(ˈ)plā-ˈȯf

: to break a tie by a play-off