Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

horseplay

/hˈɔɹsplˌeɪ/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: 2.06 in modern English

Syllables: horse-play
IPA: /hˈɔɹsplˌeɪ/

17

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Rough or rowdy play that can often result in unintentional physical harm.

Uncountable

verb

To engage in horseplay.

Intransitive verb

Example Sentences

"After a little horseplay and floating around, April said "Look over there, it's our skinny dipper." […]"
"Near-synonym: play fight"
"[S]he arose at seven o'clock and spent the first hour preparing pancakes while Al and Albert horseplayed."

Etymology

A compound of horse + play, possibly from observation of boisterous horses playing, or from its attributive sense "strong, big or coarse".

Usage

Inflected Forms

horse-play (alternative) horseplays (present, singular) horseplaying (participle, present) horseplayed (participle, past) horseplayed (past)

Frequently Paired Words

horselike horsiness horseplayer ponyplay

Synonyms

horsing around roughhousing horse around roughhouse play fight

Questions

How do you pronounce horseplay?: The recorded pronunciation is /hˈɔɹsplˌeɪ/.
What does horseplay mean?: Rough or rowdy play that can often result in unintentional physical harm.
Where does horseplay come from?: A compound of horse + play, possibly from observation of boisterous horses playing, or from its attributive sense "strong, big or coarse".

How to pronounce horseplay

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “horseplay”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/hˈɔɹsplˌeɪ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “horseplay”.
Repeat and practice — Say “horseplay” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.