as in amusing
given to good-natured joking or teasing
the little girl was lighthearted and playful
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of playful
Bella, now three and a half years old, was described by Overbye as calm, sensitive, quiet, smart, and playful.
—
Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Sep. 2025
View gallery - 6 images Hyundai just unveiled its stunning Ioniq Concept 3, a compact five-door with perhaps the most playful design language the company has experimented with in years.
—Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 9 Sep. 2025
Speaking of iconic city streets, creative director Emily Smith chose a playful rendering of Lafayette 148’s namesake location as the brand gears up for its 30th anniversary.
—Ari Stark, Footwear News, 9 Sep. 2025
Pink was pictured having a playful moment with Jameson at 2019's E!
—Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for playful
Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Sep. 2025
View gallery - 6 images Hyundai just unveiled its stunning Ioniq Concept 3, a compact five-door with perhaps the most playful design language the company has experimented with in years.
—Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 9 Sep. 2025
Speaking of iconic city streets, creative director Emily Smith chose a playful rendering of Lafayette 148’s namesake location as the brand gears up for its 30th anniversary.
—Ari Stark, Footwear News, 9 Sep. 2025
Pink was pictured having a playful moment with Jameson at 2019's E!
—Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for playful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for playful
Adjective
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Fletcher and Jolly win audience love here, and Allen’s naked ambition to become sheriff is quite amusing.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
8 Sep. 2025
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This is amusing but understandable; in an era where commodity fetishism has turned analog, low-budget cinema into something aspirational, Jenkin has made no compromises for accessibility.—
Sam Bodrojan,
IndieWire,
7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Tengbjerg, a fifty-one-year-old former pro soccer player from Denmark, is fit and trim, with a mischievous, no-nonsense brusqueness not generally associated with massage therapists.—
Sarah Larson,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
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Our Lady of Perpetual Fortitude is run by the virulent and mischievous Monsignor Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin).—
Esther Zuckerman,
Time,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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When asking questions, Shaqbot uses AI logic to reply with custom responses, which can help customers browse inventory and make their online car-buying journey just more informative and a little more entertaining.—
Andy Frye,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
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The company’s chief scientist, the Nobel-winning chemist Irving Langmuir, was tasked with entertaining Wells.—
Thomas Moynihan,
Big Think,
15 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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On a sunny Tuesday morning, 35-year-old Rita Guerrero stepped out from her door on North Mariposa Street, lively pup Olive barely contained by her leash.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Zarutska worked in a lively area of the lower South End dotted with breweries, apartment complexes and coffee shops.—
Elizabeth Wolfe,
CNN Money,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
In Don’t Get High, an alpha dork and her merry gang of dweebs start an anti-drug group at their high school to make friends and influence people.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
12 Sep. 2025
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From a massive 9-foot fir to a charming 3-foot tabletop tree, score up to 58% off a one-time buy that’ll last for years of merry memories.—
Mariana Best,
Better Homes & Gardens,
25 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Afterlife movies tend to be amiable in a goofy way, one that ends up tamping down the stakes.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
10 Sep. 2025
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Hope Anne is goofy, affectionate, full of zest, and has so much love to give.—
Trish Stinger,
Kansas City Star,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Most of Earth’s radiation isn’t energetic enough to excite water molecules into a vibrational quantum states.—
Joseph Howlett,
Quanta Magazine,
15 Sep. 2025
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The vibe is energetic without being overwhelming—a place where groups gather, conversations fill the air, and the meal becomes the centerpiece of the evening.—
Shivani Vora,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Overnight, customers discovered that their formerly frisky bots had turned frigid, some morphing into befuddled entities who seemed to be suffering from brain injuries.—
Patricia Marx,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
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The film’s first trailer hinted at something frisky and fun and glossy, with a thrilling underbelly, a sexy and wild outing that will put Ibsen in an entirely new light.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
25 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Playful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/playful. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.
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