play with

phrasal verb

played with; playing with; plays with

: to move or handle (something) with one's hands or fingers often without thinking

Stop playing with that pen and pay attention to what I'm saying.

: to handle, change, or deal with (something) in a careless way

I played with the radio for a while but couldn't get it to work.

It's important to teach your children not to play with guns/fire/matches.

Don't play with my heart/emotions.

You have to take this seriously. You're playing with people's lives!

: to think about (something) briefly and not very seriously

I played with the idea of moving to Chicago but ended up staying in New York.

Examples of play with in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Over a joint video interview with Alomar and the pianist Nat Adderley Jr., who both played with Luther, the pair wrestled with the question of how their friend would feel about these albums becoming available again. —

Ross Scarano, New York Times, 5 June 2024 In the case of the falcons, which live in a place in which food resources are more available in some seasons than in others, playing with objects might reveal an unexpected nutrient source. —

Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 5 June 2024 June 4, 2024 With experience, committing fewer turnovers and playing with more physicality, two issues that currently plague the Sparks, will come. —

Marissa Kraus, Los Angeles Times, 4 June 2024 In a September 2023 episode of Call Her Daddy, Alix’s brother hopped on the mic and thanked her for playing with him and his toys. —

Mckinley Franklin, Peoplemag, 3 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for play with

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'play with.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.