plays (upon)

verb

present tense third-person singular of play (upon)
as in exploits
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 plays (upon)
  1. exploits
  2. manipulates
Verb
  • Deed theft often exploits grief, financial distress, inheritance disputes and the limited resources of older homeowners.
    — Landon Dais, New York Daily News, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Russian ballistic attacks have risen fast in recent weeks, hitting the capital Kyiv particularly hard, as Moscow exploits Ukraine’s near-zero stocks of Patriot interceptor missiles.
    — Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of exploits
Verb
  • The drug was created by evil businessman Roland Daggett who manipulates Hagen to take over Wayne Enterprises.
    — Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 23 July 2026
  • In retaliation, Artemis manipulates the winds so that Agamemnon and his fleet can’t sail to Troy.
    — Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 20 July 2026
Definition of manipulates
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

plays up
plays (upon)
plays (with)
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Cite this Entry

“Plays (upon).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plays%20%28upon%29. Accessed 18 Aug. 2026.

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