To put in action or motion; as, to play cannon upon a fortification; to play a trump."First Peace and Silence all disputes control, Then Order plays the soul."
2.
To perform music upon; as, to play the flute or the organ.
3.
To perform, as a piece of music, on an instrument; as, to play a waltz on the violin.
4.
To bring into sportive or wanton action; to exhibit in action; to execute; as, to play tricks. "Nature here Wantoned as in her prime, and played at will Her virgin fancies."
5.
To act or perform (a play); to represent in music action; as, to play a comedy; also, to act in the character of; to represent by acting; to simulate; to behave like; as, to play King Lear; to play the woman."Thou canst play the rational if thou wilt."
6.
To engage in, or go together with, as a contest for amusement or for a wager or prize; as, to play a game at baseball.
7.
To keep in play, as a hooked fish, in order to land it.
To play hob, to play the part of a mischievous spirit; to work mischief.
To play off, to display; to show; to put in exercise; as, to play off tricks.
To play one's cards, to manage one's means or opportunities; to contrive.
Played out, tired out; exhausted; at the end of one's resources. (Colloq.)
Play v. i. (past & past part. played; pres. part. playing)
1.
To engage in sport or lively recreation; to exercise for the sake of amusement; to frolic; to spot. "As Cannace was playing in her walk.""The lamb thy riot dooms to bleed to-day, Had he thy reason, would he skip and play!""And some, the darlings of their Lord, Play smiling with the flame and sword."
2.
To act with levity or thoughtlessness; to trifle; to be careless. ""Nay," quod this monk, "I have no lust to pleye."""Men are apt to play with their healths."
3.
To contend, or take part, in a game; as, to play ball; hence, to gamble; as, he played for heavy stakes.
4.
To perform on an instrument of music; as, to play on a flute. "One that... can play well on an instrument.""Play, my friend, and charm the charmer."
5.
To act; to behave; to practice deception. "His mother played false with a smith."
6.
To move in any manner; especially, to move regularly with alternate or reciprocating motion; to operate; to act; as, the fountain plays. "The heart beats, the blood circulates, the lungs play."
7.
To move gayly; to wanton; to disport. "Even as the waving sedges play with wind.""The setting sun Plays on their shining arms and burnished helmets.""All fame is foreign but of true desert, Plays round the head, but comes not to the heart."
8.
To act on the stage; to personate a character. "A lord will hear your play to-night.""Courts are theaters where some men play."
To play into a person's hands, to act, or to manage matters, to his advantage or benefit.
To play off, to affect; to feign; to practice artifice.
To play upon.
(a)
To make sport of; to deceive. "Art thou alive? Or is it fantasy that plays upon our eyesight."
(b)
To use in a droll manner; to give a droll expression or application to; as, to play upon words.
... Bishop Butler taught us long ago, that if you excite emotions which are intended to lead to action, and the action does not follow, the excitation of the emotion without its appropriate action makes the heart a great deal harder than it was before. That is why it is playing with edged tools to speak so much to our Christian audiences, as we sometimes hear done, about the condition of the heathen as a stimulus to missionary work. If a man does not respond and do something, ... — Expositions of Holy Scripture - St. Matthew Chaps. IX to XXVIII • Alexander Maclaren Read full book for free!
... of Salisbury Plain," with other narratives of the excellent Mrs. Hannah More too much neglected in maturer life. With these are admitted also "Viri Romae," Nepos, Florus, Phaedrus, and even the Latin grammar, because they count, playing here upon these mimic boards the silent but awful part of second and third conspirators, a role in after years assumed by statelier and more celebrated volumes—the "books without which no gentleman's library ... — The Function Of The Poet And Other Essays • James Russell Lowell Read full book for free!
... not lodge in my pocket," said Seabrooke; "how can you carry such a sum of money in such an insecure place, Neville? Playing rough-and-tumble games, too, when any minute it is likely to fall out of your pocket. I shall lock it up, I can tell you; and what if you tell me not to return it to you till ... — Bessie Bradford's Prize • Joanna H. Mathews Read full book for free!
... the Crown-Prince, who was exceedingly attentive to his royal brother, were sitting together, with Prince Dolor playing in a corner of the room, dragging himself about with his arms rather than his legs, and sometimes trying feebly to crawl from one chair to another, it seemed to strike the father that all was ... — The Little Lame Prince - And: The Invisible Prince; Prince Cherry; The Prince With The Nose - The Frog-Prince; Clever Alice • Miss Mulock--Pseudonym of Maria Dinah Craik Read full book for free!
... that he had never recorded a political vote, and that he was at this present moment, to use his own frank expression, no more connected with human politics than the horses that were drawing him! How he must have marvelled at Fate for playing him such a trick! On the same day, at the urgent request of Sir John Colborne, he removed to Government House. On Monday, the 25th, he was sworn into office as Lieutenant-Governor; and on Tuesday Sir John and his family took their departure for Montreal. The Compact took care ... — The Story of the Upper Canada Rebellion, Volume 1 • John Charles Dent Read full book for free!
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