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

And similar to hockey, penalties can lead to power play situations in which one team is undermanned. —Sacbee.com, 3 Nov. 2025

Bolduc’s hit on Senators star defenceman Jake Sanderson just before the nine-minute mark of the first period sent Sanderson into the Canadiens’ bench and incited Sens tough guy Kurtis MacDermid to go after him, handing the Canadiens a power play. —Arpon Basu, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025

California could check Trump’s redistricting power plays in other states. —Bart Jansen, USA Today, 3 Nov. 2025

And then one minute into the Panthers’ third power play of the period, Florida fell behind 1-0 on a Leo Carlsson shorthanded goal. —Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 30 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1947, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for power play

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