as in friskily
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Recent Examples of playfully
Vogue's Anna Wintour playfully poked fun at Rocky's daughter being his namesake in her introduction to the rapper, 37.
—
Anika Reed, USA Today, 4 Nov. 2025
Dillon playfully shouted back to her.
—Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 3 Nov. 2025
Rockets star Kevin Durant is close with Drake, and the duo playfully jawed back and forth throughout the contest.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 30 Oct. 2025
Machitar, however, just smacked the coach playfully on the shoulder.
—Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Oct. 2025
Highly creative professionals often approach work playfully.
—Cas Holman, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2025
The black-and-white images are clean and simple of the Hollywood star being playfully in bed or on the couch.
—Hikmat Mohammed, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
The ruched toe boxes are another style that playfully subverts the classic loafer design, offering an unfussy ease that helps soften more masculine tailoring.
—Jake Henry Smith, Glamour, 17 Oct. 2025
Maybe that’s a delicate dance even for Drinkwitz, who invoked the Alabama game several times but semi-playfully chided the media for relevant questions about the stuff that plainly needs to be shored up.
—Kansas City Star, 15 Oct. 2025
Anika Reed, USA Today, 4 Nov. 2025
Dillon playfully shouted back to her.
—Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 3 Nov. 2025
Rockets star Kevin Durant is close with Drake, and the duo playfully jawed back and forth throughout the contest.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 30 Oct. 2025
Machitar, however, just smacked the coach playfully on the shoulder.
—Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Oct. 2025
Highly creative professionals often approach work playfully.
—Cas Holman, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2025
The black-and-white images are clean and simple of the Hollywood star being playfully in bed or on the couch.
—Hikmat Mohammed, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
The ruched toe boxes are another style that playfully subverts the classic loafer design, offering an unfussy ease that helps soften more masculine tailoring.
—Jake Henry Smith, Glamour, 17 Oct. 2025
Maybe that’s a delicate dance even for Drinkwitz, who invoked the Alabama game several times but semi-playfully chided the media for relevant questions about the stuff that plainly needs to be shored up.
—Kansas City Star, 15 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for playfully
Adverb
-
The umpire called Robinson safe, while Berra animatedly disagreed.—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
18 Oct. 2025
-
MrBeast, the internet personality most famous for his videos documenting random acts of extreme charity, is in shorts, animatedly talking and gesturing with his hands.—
Chris Quintana,
USA Today,
12 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
Old loves may resurface, either literally or energetically.—
Dossé-Via Trenou,
Refinery29,
2 Nov. 2025
-
Then, the camera panned over to Kelce, who was energetically bouncing up and down with his hand over his heart.—
Natasha Dye,
PEOPLE,
29 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
The song's interplay between choir and orchestra is buoyantly euphoric, opening a door to bolder, more intentionally progressive and soulful sounds in the country's mainstream.—
Marcus K. Dowling,
The Tennessean,
2 May 2025
Adverb
-
The head coach wasn’t there either, as Brian Kelly had briskly walked from the postgame handshake at midfield to the end zone tunnel, receiving boos from the few LSU remaining fans.—
Chris Vannini,
New York Times,
26 Oct. 2025
-
Add ice and stir briskly for 10 seconds (if using small ice) to 25 seconds (if using big ice).—
Jeremy Repanich,
Robb Report,
25 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
While skittishly edited, the film nevertheless builds up Faithfull’s biography in basic chronological order.—
Leslie Felperin,
HollywoodReporter,
31 Aug. 2025
Adverb
-
His disdain for Christmas is no match for visits from enchanting ghosts, a lively ensemble of characters, and the music of the season.—
Kirby Adams,
Louisville Courier Journal,
15 Sep. 2025
-
Music comes through with clean highs and enough bass to keep things lively at everyday listening levels.—
Shubham Yewale,
PC Magazine,
12 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
Then again, maybe $1,000 just rolls trippingly off the tongue and into Trump’s good graces.—
Stephen Gandel,
The Seattle Times,
3 Feb. 2018
-
One man, whose arrogance and ego lead him trippingly into chaos of his own making, can turn a shining city on the hill into a shadowy, taudry replica of itself. …—
James Hohmann,
Washington Post,
14 July 2017
Adverb
-
By the end of the opening period, the Clippers had more turnovers (nine) than shots made (eight) and rebounds (seven) while the Jazz were moving the ball crisply and scoring in the paint at will, closing the period on a 24-5 run.—
Oc Register,
Oc Register,
23 Oct. 2025
-
The left is crisply defined by light and shade and nested architectural frames.—
Kate Colby
October 2,
Literary Hub,
2 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Playfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/playfully. Accessed 9 Nov. 2025.
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