play (on or upon)

verb

Definition of play (on or upon)next
as in to use
to take unfair advantage of the candidate played on the voters' prejudices

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for play (on or upon)
  1. use
  2. exploit
  3. abuse
  4. leverage
  5. manipulate
Verb
  • In return, the Rays will use the Yankees’ home clubhouse and training facilities, including the team’s new multistory baseball operations building set to open before the start of spring training.
    Chris Kirschner, The Athletic, 9 Dec. 2024
  • The words are often used when referring to the insurance industry to describe a strategy of rejecting claims.
    Charlotte Phillipp, People.com, 9 Dec. 2024
Definition of use
Verb
  • Despite this, the U.S. and its partners aim to ensure that the Islamic State (IS) group, which still has a presence in Syria, cannot exploit the leadership void and once again exert control over wide swaths of the country.
    Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2024
  • Pursuing short-term gains by exploiting deregulation can erode the foundation of sustainable success: a stable, engaged, and productive workforce.
    Solange Charas, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024
Definition of exploit
Verb
  • The University of Chicago has long abused its architectural treasures.
    Edward Keegan, Chicago Tribune, 15 Dec. 2024
  • On Tuesday, lawmakers approved a special counsel to investigate whether Yoon committed insurrection and abused his power by issuing martial law.
    Jessie Yeung, CNN, 14 Dec. 2024
Definition of abuse
Verb
  • O’Kane will work with Noah’s development and creative teams to forge a slate of originals for brands, leveraging the indie’s relationship with sporting federations, having won an Emmy earlier this year year for its work with sports body UEFA.
    Max Goldbart, Deadline, 16 Dec. 2024
  • For example, Salesforce leverages security to build trust with cloud computing customers, especially those handling sensitive information.
    Pukar Hamal, Forbes, 16 Dec. 2024
Definition of leverage
Verb
  • But all of that changed starting in 2017, when Mr. Trump became president amid the F.B.I. investigation into Russia’s covert attempt to manipulate the 2016 election and the nature of the ties between his campaign and Moscow.
    Charlie Savage, New York Times, 15 Dec. 2024
  • Symbolic capitalists—academics, commentators, lawyers, consultants—manipulate words or data rather than making things with their hands.
    Andrew Marantz, The New Yorker, 14 Dec. 2024
Definition of manipulate
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near play (on or upon)

play-offs

play (on or upon)

play out

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Play (on or upon).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/play%20%28on%20or%20upon%29. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.

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