as in to exploit
to control or take advantage of by artful, unfair, or insidious means
played upon the customer's vanity to convince her to buy the expensive makeup kit
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for play (upon)
Verb
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This controversy will be an early test of how Mayor Mamdani balances his commitment to parks and open space against for-profit developer efforts to exploit the city’s housing crisis to circumvent zoning rules and renege on community commitments.—
Katherine Thompson,
New York Daily News,
2 Mar. 2026 -
Israeli officials have hinted the strike was expedited to exploit a daylight window of opportunity when senior Iranian leaders met.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
1 Mar. 2026
Verb
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One of the images – which was flagged during a CNN check as being potentially AI-manipulated – showed the girl, believed to be named Kim Ju Ae and in her early teens, firing a sniper rifle.—
Brad Lendon,
CNN Money,
28 Feb. 2026
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Growers manipulate the growing conditions of the plants by regulating temperature, light and moisture.—
Dawn Pettinelli,
Hartford Courant,
28 Feb. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Play (upon).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/play%20%28upon%29. Accessed 6 Mar. 2026.
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