as in friskily
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Recent Examples of playfully
Heck, even 78-year-old coach Dick Advocaat, the oldest man ever to coach a World Cup game, on Friday playfully suggested Curaçao’s best path to victory would be if Ecuador was down four players.
—
Kansas City Star,
21 June 2026
While headlining Spain's O Son do Camiño music festival in Santiago de Compostela on Thursday, June 18, the 41-year-old pop star showed some love for her boyfriend, Justin Trudeau, while playfully dissing a few of her exes.
—
Desiree Anello,
PEOPLE,
20 June 2026
It's named after Gilded Age heiress Arabella Duval Huntington; her very captivating (and at times spicy) life is playfully chronicled in murals on the bar walls.
—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
19 June 2026
Laughing and playfully rolling her eyes, Vivian then took part in an elaborate handshake ritual with her dad.
—
Lara Walsh,
InStyle,
14 June 2026
At another event that month, celebrating his great-grandmother's 70-year-reign, the young prince playfully poked his tongue out at mother Catherine, turning his nose up with his thumb.
—
Jennifer Hassan,
USA Today,
13 June 2026
Ohtani playfully side-eyed Roberts as the manager discussed his status with reporters on Saturday afternoon.
—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
13 June 2026
The Velveteers had just wrapped up a blistering set on a stage erected in a bar, and before that, No Wave legend Lydia Lunch had interrupted her act to playfully banter with Purple magazine editor Olivier Zahm, who was toting around his adorable little chihuahua, Topochico.
—
Nate Freeman,
Vanity Fair,
9 June 2026
The chatter caused the emcees to not-so-playfully shush the crowd several times.
—
Jared Perlo,
NBC news,
6 June 2026
Kansas City Star,
21 June 2026
While headlining Spain's O Son do Camiño music festival in Santiago de Compostela on Thursday, June 18, the 41-year-old pop star showed some love for her boyfriend, Justin Trudeau, while playfully dissing a few of her exes.
—
Desiree Anello,
PEOPLE,
20 June 2026
It's named after Gilded Age heiress Arabella Duval Huntington; her very captivating (and at times spicy) life is playfully chronicled in murals on the bar walls.
—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
19 June 2026
Laughing and playfully rolling her eyes, Vivian then took part in an elaborate handshake ritual with her dad.
—
Lara Walsh,
InStyle,
14 June 2026
At another event that month, celebrating his great-grandmother's 70-year-reign, the young prince playfully poked his tongue out at mother Catherine, turning his nose up with his thumb.
—
Jennifer Hassan,
USA Today,
13 June 2026
Ohtani playfully side-eyed Roberts as the manager discussed his status with reporters on Saturday afternoon.
—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
13 June 2026
The Velveteers had just wrapped up a blistering set on a stage erected in a bar, and before that, No Wave legend Lydia Lunch had interrupted her act to playfully banter with Purple magazine editor Olivier Zahm, who was toting around his adorable little chihuahua, Topochico.
—
Nate Freeman,
Vanity Fair,
9 June 2026
The chatter caused the emcees to not-so-playfully shush the crowd several times.
—
Jared Perlo,
NBC news,
6 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for playfully
Adverb
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Last season Hustus handled more than 16,000 lobsters all while chatting animatedly with visitors from around the world—and often introducing them to their first tastes of lobster.
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On her Instagram Story, the As Ever founder shared an accompanying video which, according to People, features a voice that’s likely Lilibet’s animatedly speaking towards the end of the clip, as the waves rolled in.
Adverb
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Still, while these surfaces are clearly meant to reflect deeper emotional and cultural truths, Coppola’s mining of them is done glancingly, airily.
Adverb
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There was also a large contingent of Iranian fans who energetically waved the nation’s current flag.
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When stewardship of the program passed to my colleagues and me, our responsibility was to expand energetically into a new age of media technology while preserving the values our audience expects.
Adverb
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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.
Adverb
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Obama briskly entered and immediately apologized for tardiness.
-
Early announces, briskly nodding.
Adverb
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The horse, not sensing any guidance on its ribcage, begins to move skittishly in tight, concentric circles.
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While skittishly edited, the film nevertheless builds up Faithfull’s biography in basic chronological order.
Adverb
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One day, a young Jonah — lively as ever — jumped knee-first onto his father’s lap, in the wheelchair.
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The boat holds a cluster of restaurants that draw a steady stream of Cairo locals, which keeps the dining scene feeling lively well into the evening.
Adverb
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Then again, maybe $1,000 just rolls trippingly off the tongue and into Trump’s good graces.
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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. …
Cite this Entry
“Playfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/playfully. Accessed 26 Jun. 2026.
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