power play

noun

1

: a military, diplomatic, political, or administrative maneuver in which power is brought to bear

2

a

: a concentrated attack in football in which the ballcarrier is preceded by a mass of blockers

b

: a situation in ice hockey in which one team temporarily has more players on the ice than the other team because of a penalty

Examples of power play in a Sentence

They scored their first goal on a power play.

He made a power play to seize control of the company.

Recent Examples on the Web

Buffalo’s power play was inconsistent last season, and Thompson only had six of his 40 goals on the power play. — Matthew Fairburn, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026

Trump’s power play also harks back to a tradition of Yankee imperialism. — Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 3 Sep. 2026

One sign of Rhaenyra's power play is her expulsion of adviser and one-time lover Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno), who served as the queen's conscience. — Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2026

The player matched all five white numbers (5-9-35-54-63) to win $2 million, but not the red Powerball number (7) with the power play bonus. — Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1947, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for power play

• aaa
• alleyway
• alumnae
• anime
• anyway
• arete
• attache
• axillae
• baa
• beaujolais
• bouvier
• breakaway