variants
or less commonly roleplay
role-played also roleplayed; role-playing also roleplaying; role-plays also roleplays
1
: to act out the role of
2
: to represent in action
students were asked to role-play the thoughts and feelings of each character—
R. G. Lambert
R. G. Lambert
: to play a role
role-play
noun
or less commonly roleplay
plural role-plays also roleplays
I practice this with student social workers through case studies and role-play.
—Kevin Brazant, quoted in psychologytoday.com
Kevin Brazant, quoted in psychologytoday.com
Examples of role-play in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Over the previous decade, Mats had spent about 20,000 hours playing World of Warcraft, an online role-playing fantasy game.
—Jake Kring-Schreifels, TIME, 25 Oct. 2024
Now, Titmouse is looking to bring its own spin on the classic role-playing game.
—Rob Wieland, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024
Critical Role next year is turning 10, and the Dungeons & Dragon role-playing troupe is staging a worldwide tour to mark the milestone.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 21 Oct. 2024
World of Warcraft, a groundbreaker in the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) genre, was made into a movie.
—Chris Hewish, Forbes, 16 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for role-play 
Jake Kring-Schreifels, TIME, 25 Oct. 2024
Now, Titmouse is looking to bring its own spin on the classic role-playing game.
—Rob Wieland, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024
Critical Role next year is turning 10, and the Dungeons & Dragon role-playing troupe is staging a worldwide tour to mark the milestone.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 21 Oct. 2024
World of Warcraft, a groundbreaker in the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) genre, was made into a movie.
—Chris Hewish, Forbes, 16 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for role-play
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'role-play.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near role-play
Cite this Entry
“Role-play.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/role-play. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share