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play (upon)

verb

Definition of play (upon)next
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)
  1. exploit
  2. manipulate
Verb
  • The last thing that Canada needs is a faction that can be exploited by foes — both foreign and domestic — in an attempt to break up Canada to better control its considerable wealth.
    — Rachel Marsden, Hartford Courant, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Those goals matter because China is building capabilities both to exploit space and to deny it to the United States.
    — Mark Montgomery, The Orlando Sentinel, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of exploit
Verb
  • Present-day police work reflects our current economic order by placing a high value on manipulating such immaterialities.
    — Sophie Landres, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026
  • According to Treasury, Galeano had been detained in the United States in 2017 on suspicion of manipulating ATMs and was found with drugs and backpacks containing a large amount of cash.
    — Antonio Maria Delgado, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of manipulate
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

play up
play (upon)
playwear
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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 1 Oct. 2026.

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