power play
4
6.3
- noun
- /ˈpaʊər pleɪ/
- Literature
:
maniobra de poder
- In negotiations, he made a power play by threatening to withdraw funding if his demands were not met.
Was he, was this a power play on his part or?
- Was he, was this a power play on his part or?
- My theory about why you've done this is it's a pure power play.
- Rather, what this looks like to me is exactly the sort of shrewd power play that we have come to expect from NVIDIA.
- The whole thing about it, it just seems like a a power play from us to ban it from China, which will force the owner to sell off shares.
Examples
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Writers are used to being on the sidelines, watching these power plays.
Blog text (12) -
Just saying no is a power play.
Blog text (32) -
Their power play failed, and now we all know to keep an eye on them going forward.
Blog text (18) -
I sense a power play.
Blog text (26) -
Even then, they are still conducting power plays for their own advantage.
Blog text (20) -
Surely it's merely a politico-cultural power play to get him a better house and car.
Blog text (14) -
As for the losing candidates and their supporters, don't get involved in this power play.
Blog text (14) -
Framing the conversation in an unexpected way like that can be useful, but it's almost always a power play.
Blog text (26) -
Lee Saunders, secretary-treasurer of the labor union AFSCME, said what Walker is doing is "a power play, pure and simple."
Blog text (14) -
The votes against the justices were a power play—a bullying tactic by a majority that didn't get its way and wanted to punish those deemed responsible.
Academic text (2011)
Synonyms
119
5.3
An action to get power, attention, or advantage
8
8.2
Using clever but not clearly against the rules moves to get an advantage in a game or competition
4
9.9
A risky way of acting that pushes events to the edge to force a decision
3
6.6
A bold action to show strength or gain advantage over others
1
7.4
A way of putting pressure on someone to make them agree
A plan to control people by tricking them
Antonyms
How Aggressive
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is compositionally built from 'power' (influence/strength) + 'play' (a tactical move), so a learner who knows both words can reasonably infer it denotes a tactic that uses strength or advantage. However, the precise, sport-specific sense (e.g. a particular formation or numerical-advantage situation) and conventional usage are somewhat lexicalized, so the full meaning and contexts of use may not be fully predictable to a B1 learner.
Etymology
Power play comes from the image of a strong move in a game where someone uses extra power to make a bold play and push others aside. That's why it means an aggressive action to 'gain control'.