Thesaurus results for PLAYS (UPON)

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

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for plays (upon)

Verb

The film follows an 11-year-old boy who exploits his brother’s tragic death to fight his father and his community, until his lies expose the hypocrisy and corruption beneath a seemingly moral society.

— Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 21 Aug. 2026
In both the show and book, John recognizes Lucky’s talent for reading people at a young age, uses her own trust in him to his advantage in his schemes and exploits his daughter in order to exploit others.

— Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of exploits

Verb

An anxiety ring is a piece of jewelry with a spinning band, bead or textured surface that the wearer manipulates with their fingers as a discreet grounding tool.

— Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 17 Aug. 2026
The drug was created by evil businessman Roland Daggett who manipulates Hagen to take over Wayne Enterprises.

— Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 23 July 2026

Definition of manipulates

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plays up

plays (upon)

plays (with)

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“Plays (upon).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plays%20%28upon%29. Accessed 25 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of plays (upon)

verb

Example Sentences

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