How to Use playoff in a Sentence
-
In 2019, the Aces went to the playoffs and made the semifinals.
—Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 15 Oct. 2023
-
The lottery teams are the 14 clubs that failed to make the playoffs.
—Tom Orsborn, San Antonio Express-News, 15 May 2023
-
But Jackson is 2–4 in the playoffs, and now 1–5 against the Chiefs.
—Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2024
-
The top three teams in a five-team league like the Zeta will go to the playoffs.
—Steve Fryer, Orange County Register, 2 Aug. 2024
-
The coach recalled a goal-line stand at the end of a playoff game.
—Thomas Lake, CNN, 12 July 2024
-
The playoff berth this season was the team’s first under the coach.
—Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 15 Feb. 2024
-
In the past 25 years, the Cowboys have won just three playoff games.
—Matt Young, Chron, 29 July 2022
-
Most of them have to do with teams that could be in the playoff race, but not all of them.
—Doug Lesmerises, cleveland, 8 July 2022
-
The Ducks never got to the gate, missing the playoffs for the fifth straight season.
—Helene Elliott, Los Angeles Times, 13 June 2023
-
The win, New York's sixth in its past eight games, clinched a playoff spot.
—Georgia News, ajc, 14 Aug. 2022
-
Getting to the playoffs will be a gauntlet for the Heat.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 1 Apr. 2025
-
The Bengals, on the other hand, did not make the playoffs at all.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
-
Whether the Dolphins can win a playoff game is hard to say.
—Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 24 Feb. 2025
-
That catch propelled the Browns to a 23-17 win in OT, and kept their playoff hopes alive.
—Irie Harris, cleveland, 25 Jan. 2023
-
Bird on the field steals the show during tense Padres-Dodgers playoff game.
—Laura L. Davis, USA TODAY, 13 Oct. 2022
-
Blown away by a string of playoff losses, love was no longer in the air.
—Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 1 Sep. 2022
-
While with the Bruins, Marchand helped beat the Maple Leafs four times in the playoffs.
—Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 19 May 2025
-
His close friend, Sam Burns, beat him in a playoff at the Colonial.
—Doug Ferguson, ajc, 10 Sep. 2022
-
The Bills dropped to 13-2 when hosting an NFL playoff game.
—John Wawrow, Hartford Courant, 22 Jan. 2023
-
The Kings are back in the lottery after failing to reach the playoffs.
—Jason Anderson, Sacramento Bee, 11 May 2024
-
The Mavs have clinched a post in the playoffs and have five games left to improve their seeding.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Apr. 2024
-
Not making the playoffs for three years has fans antsy.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 8 July 2024
-
To reach the playoffs, a team needs to show an ability to win close games late.
—Evan Grant, Dallas News, 30 Aug. 2023
-
Again, these are big swings, the kind of flails that Dodgers batters take when a playoff game is on the line.
—Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times, 18 Nov. 2022
-
Though neither team made it to the final dance, their triumphs over the Reign were the best part of the playoffs.
—Ash Parrish, The Verge, 3 Oct. 2023
-
The team won its last three games to qualify for the playoffs, then beat Hawaii on Nov. 27 to reach the World Bowl.
—Creg Stephenson | Cstephenson@al.com, al, 26 July 2023
-
Thomas and Zalatoris began the playoff with birdies on the first hole, the 13th.
—Bill Pennington, New York Times, 22 May 2022
-
But, in the playoff's first year with a dozen teams, the Crimson Tide are on the outside looking in.
—Ryan Morik, Fox News, 27 Nov. 2024
-
Pickard is 6-0 these playoffs when coming on in relief.
—Dave Hyde, Sun Sentinel, 13 June 2025
-
What will the Miami Heat do to its roster after being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs in each of the last two seasons?
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 13 June 2025
-
Lopez was played off the floor at times in the playoffs against the Pacers.
—Ryan Stano, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 May 2025
-
He’s got soft hands and makes a lot of plays off his backhand.
—Scott Wheeler, The Athletic, 25 Mar. 2025
-
What’s your favorite thing about the other to play off of?
—Juan A. Ramírez, Vogue, 22 Nov. 2024
-
Smith got up and rallied the rest of his teammates to the line of scrimmage to get the next play off.
—Ryan Gaydos, Fox News, 29 Jan. 2023
-
NC State got the ball back with four seconds left but couldn't get a play off.
—Lindsay Schnell, USA TODAY, 18 Mar. 2023
-
The two play off of each other in a way that reminds you of young love and old movies.
—Amanda Luberto, The Arizona Republic, 22 June 2023
-
The spot plays off of Michael Cera’s name to promote their product.
—Derek Rucker, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024
-
That allowed Kim to play off the ball and show off his perimeter game.
—Patrick Z. McGavin, chicagotribune.com, 4 Mar. 2021
-
But for much of the night, the All-Star guard was playing off the ball, reading the game, not forcing it.
—Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 7 Apr. 2025
-
Many in baseball have played off the practice as being just part of the game.
—Ken Belson, New York Times, 6 Oct. 2023
-
The electric guitar is bright and plays off the fiddle well.
—PC Magazine, 4 June 2025
-
Being able to play off pick-and-roll is one of my biggest strengths.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 19 May 2024
-
The movie plays off a perfect nightmare for many who have sailed, said Ruz.
—John Hopewell, Variety, 20 Dec. 2023
-
Good news is Schroder can play off the ball with the starters and take over as the playmaker for stretches with the bench.
—Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 8 Dec. 2020
-
Is my voice going to hold up, my mind remain sharp enough to play off the crowd?
—Charles E. Kraus, New York Daily News, 1 July 2024
-
The teams were tied 42-42 when Uphoff took a rebound and raced the length of the court to complete a three-point play off a drive.
—Dan Albano, Orange County Register, 15 June 2024
-
The singer slowed down to a stop and changed her moves to look like a strut in order to play off the wardrobe malfunction.
—Starr Bowenbank, People.com, 19 May 2025
-
The way the light banana slices play off the deep, toasty flavor of the sticky toffee drizzled on top?
—Rachel Bernhard, Journal Sentinel, 26 Nov. 2024
-
She was played off the court by Napheesa Collier over the final 10-plus minutes of Game 1.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 17 Oct. 2024
-
And someone like Jones protects the ball and frees Murray to play off screens with the second unit.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 28 May 2025
-
The two play off each other well and are asked to carry the load for New York since the options off the bench aren’t up to the same level.
—Kyle Foley, Orlando Sentinel, 29 Nov. 2024
-
That unit features five guys who can space the floor and play off the catch offensively.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 1 May 2025
-
The hoax appears to play off of fears of software used to spy on victims’ phones, known as spyware.
—Ben Goggin, NBC News, 9 Oct. 2023
-
The brown-red tones of the floors play off the warm green walls, and gold finishes complete the earthy transformation in the room.
—Sophia Beams, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 May 2025
-
Chicken sausages pair best with a cold Sauvignon Blanc, where the sweet and salty notes play off each other.
—Kristy Alpert, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 July 2023
-
The golden liqueur plays off the spirit like sun off snow, bringing some herbal warmth through the bracing chill.
—Jason O'Bryan, Robb Report, 28 Sep. 2024
-
To play off the skirt, Corrin wore a pair of sheer black gloves, and then grounded the whole thing with hefty, below-the-knee platform boots.
—Christian Allaire, Vogue, 5 Dec. 2023
-
The chorus plays off a familiar trope, with a Kesha, twist, of course.
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 30 Mar. 2023
-
Many recent pause ads try to play off the decision to halt streaming a show.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 12 May 2025
-
Each episode features two dates that play off each other.
—John Hopewell, Variety, 20 Jan. 2025
Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'playoff.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Last Updated: