Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

play-by-play

Word Rarity Common

Frequency: 5.29 in modern English

Syllables: play-by--play
IPA

25

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

4

Syllables

5

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Describing a sports commentary in which a commentator describes every action in some detail as it occurs, often assisted by a second commentator who provides background information and other comments.

American usage

adj

Providing a detailed stepwise description (of how certain events unfolded).

noun

A detailed description or analysis of sporting events as they occur in succession, one play at a time.

American usage

Example Sentences

"A stripper who works at the New York gentlemen’s club where the Cardi B brawl reportedly popped off gave a play-by-play account of the fracas in a recent radio interview."
"So I collected a cross section of play-by-plays, definitely not as many as I'd like to collect but enough to feel pretty comfortable with what I was seeing."

Etymology

From play + by + play.

Usage

American usage

Inflected Forms

play-by-plays (plural)

Synonyms

ball-by-ball

Questions

What does play-by-play mean?: Describing a sports commentary in which a commentator describes every action in some detail as it occurs, often assisted by a second commentator who provides background information and other comments.
Where does play-by-play come from?: From play + by + play.

How to pronounce play-by-play

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