verb / noun
play
To perform music or a dramatic role.
She plays the violin in a small orchestra every weekend.
Etymology
The older verb concerned activity, recreation, and performance. Its artistic use specializes the action to producing music or presenting a dramatic role.
More examples
- Marcus plays the king in our school production.
- The theater presents a new play every spring.
- Please play that song again.
Forms
play · plays · played · playing
player noun — A person who performs music or acts.
playwright noun — A person who writes plays for performance.