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Leaders are not pale reflectors of major social conflicts; they play up some, play down others, ignore still others.
James MacGregor Burns

Meaning of "play up" in the English dictionary

Dictionary
DICTIONARY
section

PRONUNCIATION OF PLAY UP

play up play
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GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF PLAY UP

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Play up is a verb.
The verb is the part of the sentence that is conjugated and expresses action and state of being.

WHAT DOES PLAY UP MEAN IN ENGLISH?

Definition of play up in the English dictionary

The first definition of play up in the dictionary is to emphasize or highlight. Other definition of play up is to behave irritatingly. Play up is also to function erratically.


WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE PLAY UP

play on words
play one´s ace
play one´s cards
play out
play park
play possum
play reading
play safe
play second fiddle
play silly buggers
play the devil with
play the field
play the fool
play the game
play the market
play the race card
play to the gallery
play up to
play with
play with fire

WORDS THAT END LIKE PLAY UP

buy up
cosy up
cowboy up
cry up
dry up
go belly up
gussy up
key up
lay up
marry up
pally up
pay up
pony up
shinny up

Synonyms and antonyms of play up in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

SYNONYMS OF «PLAY UP»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «play up» and belong to the same grammatical category.
synonyms of play up

Translation of «play up» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF PLAY UP

Find out the translation of play up to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of play up from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «play up» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

玩起来
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

jugar hasta
570 millions of speakers

English

play up
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

ऊपर खेलना
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

لعب حتى
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

играть до
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

jogar para cima
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

খেলা আপ
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

jouer jusqu´à
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Bermain
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

spielen bis
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

取り上げる
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

최대 재생
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Muter munggah
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

chơi lên
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

விளையாட
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

खेळायला
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

daha yüksek sesle çalmak
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

fare i capricci
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

grać
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

грати до
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

joacă în sus
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

παίξει μέχρι
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

speel tot
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

spela upp
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

spille opp
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of play up

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «PLAY UP»

The term «play up» is regularly used and occupies the 60.345 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Regularly used
72
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «play up» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of play up
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «play up».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «PLAY UP» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «play up» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «play up» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about play up

EXAMPLES

10 QUOTES WITH «PLAY UP»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word play up.
1
Chester Brown
The whole schizophrenia angle interested me. When I first started working on it, I thought I would play up that angle more than I ended up doing. The religious aspect of the story was also a draw.
2
Carrie Brownstein
I've never understood people who play up the artifice of music.
3
James MacGregor Burns
Leaders are not pale reflectors of major social conflicts; they play up some, play down others, ignore still others.
4
Julius Erving
With the crowds on your side, it's easier to play up to your potential.
5
Rose Leslie
I have had the most wonderful childhood, and I was raised in a very loving family. And it was nothing short of an amazing privilege because I was incredibly lucky to be able to play up in trees and make it like silly dens in a bush and stuff like that.
6
Cindy Morgan
In sports, you play up to the level of your opponent, and I did some of my best work with Chevy, and I'm so grateful to have worked opposite him. He was a handful and a challenge, and he made me step up to the plate.
7
Don Nelson
If we're gonna win, we have to play up to and beyond our potential. We're capable of doing that.
8
James Purefoy
When you're unhappy, you tend to play up, don't you?
9
Huston Smith
The notion that Western religions are more rigid than those of Asia is overdrawn. Ours is the most permissive society history has ever known - almost the only thing that is forbidden now is to forbid - and Asian teachers and their progeny play up to this propensity by soft-pedaling Hinduism's, Buddhism's, Sufism's rules.
10
Dweezil Zappa
And, you know, my dad would show me some things sometimes, but the best things that I got to do were to actually see really good players play up close. That gives you an idea of fingering and technique and what not.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «PLAY UP»

Discover the use of play up in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to play up and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
Play Up Corinth: A History of Corinthian Football Club
This book tells the Corinthians' story, including various facts and scandals, as well as personal memoirs from the personalities involved.
Rob Cavallini, 2007
2
A Collection of Confusible Phrases
hit a slow ball so that it travels in a high curve: He is content to play 'donkey drops ' back into court, awaiting the right ball to hit. play down to someone play up to someone play down to someone - deliberately talk to or behave towards smb. so  ...
Yuri Dolgopolov, 2004
3
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary
MACHINES 2 If a machine plays up, it does not work as it should: The starter motor was playing up again. play up to sb to try to make someone like you and treat you well by behaving in a way you think will please them: Julia knows how to ...
‎2008
4
Learn to Play a Stringed Instrument, Bk 1: Violin
1234 Clap Play (up) V 2 3 4 O And now let's play whole notes on the lowest string , G Clap Play (down) n Count (out loud) ^~ 2 3 4 Clap Play (up) V I 1 2 3 4 o Clap Clap Play (down) Play (up) n v [1234 o [1234 O Now we shall play the strings, ...
Matesky, Ralph, Womack, Ardelle
5
Daily Life in Victorian England
And it's not for the sake of a ribboned coat, Or the selfish hope of a season's fame , But his Captain's hand on his shoulder smote — "Play Up! play up! and play the game!" The sand of the desert is sodden red — Red with the wreck of a square ...
Sally Mitchell, 1996
6
Teaching Godly Play: How to Mentor the Spiritual Development ...
Illustrations have also been updated, and the text now better reflects the playful spirit of Godly Play. Up-to-date research in childhood development and instruction has also been incorporated in this comprehensive update.
Jerome W. Berryman, 2009
7
A Sport-loving Society: Victorian and Edwardian Middle-class ...
32 McCrone, 'Play Up! Play Up! And Play the Game', p. 105. 33 Park, 'Sport, Gender and Society', pp. 86–7. 34 McCrone, 'Play Up! Play Up! And Play the Game', p. 106. 35 Park, 'Sport, Gender and Society', p. 59. 36 See McCrone, 'Play Up!
J. A. Mangan, 2006
8
Untitled
My stomach was playing up so I had to go home. play up childk 1 uk When children play up, they behave badly: The boys have been playing up at school again. machinek 2 If a machine plays up, it does not work as it should: The starter motor ...
9
PLAY BETTER TENNIS IN TWO HOURS: Simplify the Game and Play ...
Follow the simple drills in this power-packed handbook, and you’ll learn how to: Move to the ball efficiently and fluidly Stop worrying about foot position and stance Hit every stroke harder and more accurately Put a wicked topspin on ...
Oscar Wegner, Steven Ferry, 2004
10
American English Idiomatic Expressions in 52 Weeks: An Easy ...
... (COMM) 274 play on/upon (something) (CONS) 259 play one's cards right ( ACH) 273 play second fiddle to someone (IMPO) 334 play the field (REL) 310 play up (COMM) 274 play up to someone (REL) 318 play with fire (CONS) 266 played ...
John Holleman, 2006

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «PLAY UP»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term play up is used in the context of the following news items.
1
Logitech Introduces Its 2015 Play Collection Mice
These wireless mice can also play up to 10 meters away and still maintain a reliable connection. Pricing and Availability The 2015 Logitech ... «MarketWatch, Jul 15»
2
Strengths and Weaknesses of AC Milan Summer Transfer Signing …
Rightly or wrongly, it's now up to him to play up to that price. But he does have the tools at his disposal to do it—even if those tools still need a ... «Bleacher Report, Jul 15»
3
Fantasy Premier League: Top forward rotations if you miss out on …
Here's how it works: Find two lesser regarded forwards who reliably play up top. Crunch the numbers on when they play home and away. «SportingNews.com, Jul 15»
4
Arsene Wenger rules out summer exit for Emirates Cup star
Arsene Wenger. The 17-year-old, who can play up front, on either flank or behind the striker, joined the Gunners this summer from RC Lens. «Express.co.uk, Jul 15»
5
Phillies embarrass struggling Cubs with rout to cap sweep
We just did not play up to their standards. They were the much better team." The heart of the Cubs batting order — Kyle Schwarber, Kris Bryant, ... «Chicago Tribune, Jul 15»
6
Cork forced to resort to hit and hope
Cork's support play up front wasn't at the required standard for this level as too often the player in possession off-loaded too quickly before ... «Irish Examiner, Jul 15»
7
Roller Derby: Not for the faint hearted
Much like WWE wrestling, the roller derby skaters sometimes play up for the audience, delivering bigger hits then they might need to and doing ... «ABC Local, Jul 15»
8
Andy Furillo: United States needs to put its best athletes on the pitch
He could play up front. He could be what we call a box guy, a central midfield player who covers a lot of ground (from goal box to goal box). «Sacramento Bee, Jul 15»
9
How 'UnREAL' shows the reality of reality TV in a television show
The producers of "Everlasting" encourage black reality TV contestants to play up to racial stereotypes and don't allow contestants to go to the ... «The Independent, Jul 15»
10
Jurgen Klinsmann has plenty to ponder following USMNT's poor …
... that on its day is capable of beating anyone and also losing to anyone, so it's a side that tends to play up or down to the level of opposition. «ESPN FC, Jul 15»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. Play up [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/play-up>. Apr 2024 ».
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