Player Definition & Meaning

American

British

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Examples

Related Words

Synonyms player 1 American [pley-er] / ˈpleɪ ər /

noun

1. a person or thing that plays.

2. a person who takes part or is skilled in some game or sport.

3. a person who plays parts on the stage; an actor.

4. a performer on a musical instrument.

5. Informal. a participant, as in a conference or business deal.

6. a machine or piece of software that reproduces sound or images: a videodisc player;

   a record player;

   a videodisc player;

   a digital media player.

7. a gambler.

8. Slang. a person engaged in illicit or illegal activity, especially a pimp.

9. a mechanical device by which a musical instrument, as a player piano, is played automatically.

Player 2 American [pley-er] / ˈpleɪ ər /

noun

1. Gary, born 1935, South African golfer.

player 1 British / ˈpleɪə /

noun

1. a person who participates in or is skilled at some game or sport

2. a person who plays a game or sport professionally

3. a person who plays a musical instrument

4. an actor

5. informal a participant, esp a powerful one, in a particular field of activity

   a leading city player

6. See record player

7. the playing mechanism in a Pianola

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 Player 2 British / ˈpleɪə /

noun

1. Gary (ˈɡærɪ). born 1935, South African golfer: winner of nine major championships (1959–78), including the British Open (1959, 1968, 1974)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

• counterplayer noun
• nonplayer noun
• self-player noun
• superplayer noun

Etymology

Origin of player

before 1000; Middle English pleyer, Old English plegere. See play, -er 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

This season he has played more passes into the box than any other Premier League player - 146.

From BBC

“I talked to several players and most of them told me to go to college, even if it was just for a year,” Villalpando said.

From Los Angeles Times

The 18-year-old Englishman becomes just the fourth player to win the title in back-to-back years, joining Phil Taylor, Adrian Lewis and Gary Anderson in that elite group.

From BBC

"Every player fought for their country and did everything to stay in this competition, and the goalkeeper helped us in the penalty shoot-out."

From Barron's

"Every player fought for their country and did everything to stay in this competition."

From Barron's

Related Words

• athlete
• competitor
• member
• opponent
• participant
• pro
• professional
• rookie

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.