at play
31
4.7
- idiom
:
en juego
- Many different factors are at play in determining the outcome of the election.
- dynamics at play
- factors at play
- forces at play
That isn't the utilitarian instinct at play, OK?
- That isn't the utilitarian instinct at play, OK?
- Longer term yield trends are still at play.
- And and so, so that certainly is at play.
- So these are the forces behind the scene at play.
- But there's a more complex set of ideas at play.
- Like there's so many other factors at play.
- And there's going to be multiple modes of difference at play.
- I mean, I really do think that there is a much bigger thing at play here.
- These patterns die hard or never, and there are lots of cultural factors at play.
- And at the same time, there's there's larger, you know, like social dynamics at play.
- It's their grandiosity and egocentricity at play.
Examples
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Whenever children see cause and effect at play, they are recognizing a relationship.
Academic text (2009) -
What other factors are at play here beyond just the research or the theory?
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There is something big at play here.
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Do you think there could be other forces at play here?
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There are matters at play here that are part of a bigger plan.
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What forces are at play that keep it in place despite so much evidence against it?
Academic text (2008) -
The key scientific principle at play here is one that many may mistake as a fear of water.
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And I would argue that the mechanisms at play are present in more than just people.
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All of these factors are at play in how narcissists think about giving and receiving gifts.
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Several elements are at play in this unfolding but not fully solidified change in relations.
Academic text (2000)
Synonyms
79
3.5
Connected to something because you take part in it
Antonyms
How Influential
Surface Forms
Morphology
at + play
The meaning 'having an influence / being involved' is a metaphorical extension of the literal idea of something being 'in play' or active, so a learner who knows 'at' and 'play' can partially infer involvement but not the precise pragmatic sense without context. Cross-linguistic parallels (e.g. Spanish en juego, French en jeu) make the figurative extension fairly familiar, so the expression is partially but not fully transparent to a B1 learner.
Etymology
At play comes from the image of people or things actually at play, like players on a field who move and change the game, each affecting the result. So when we say something is at play, we mean it is 'involved' or 'having an influence' in the situation.