toy with

phrasal verb

toyed with; toying with; toys with

1

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

I toyed with the idea of moving to France but ended up staying here.

2

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

She toyed with her hair while she talked on the phone.

3

: to deal with or control (someone or something) in a clever and usually unfair or selfish way

Do you really love me, or are you just toying with me?

Don't toy with my emotions.

Examples of toy with in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Given Given is a show that focuses on a cast of young men in high school who are all part of the same band, toying with the trope of first loves and budding romantic feelings in a way that feels natural, if not at times realistic in a heart-wrenching way. —Kazuma Hashimoto, Them., 21 May 2025

These films toy with the audience as much as Death toys with its victims. —Gayle Sequeira, Vulture, 16 May 2025

When Dončić and LeBron James toyed with the Wolves in their first meeting, Conley could not help but feel a little sorry for himself. —Jon Krawczynski, New York Times, 1 May 2025

If that sounds far-fetched, consider that China, Europe, and parts of Asia have all toyed with restricting access for foreign financial institutions in the past. —Zennon Kapron, Forbes.com, 16 Apr. 2025