play

The Sailor's Word-Book

Motion in the frame, masts, &c. Also said of the marine steam-engine when it is in action or in play. Also, in long voyages or tedious blockades, play-acting may be encouraged with benefit; for the excitement and employment thus afforded are not only good anti-scorbutics, but also promoters of content and good fellowship: in such

"Jack is not bound by critics' crabbed laws,

But gives to all his unreserved applause:

He laughs aloud when jokes his fancy please

Such are the honest manners of the seas.

And never

never may he ape those fools

Who, lost to reason, laugh or cry by rules."

Related Words

Play
·noun Amusement; sport; frolic; gambols. II. Play ·noun Performance on an instrument of music. III...

Webster's Dictionary of the English Language
play
To play booty; to play with an intention to lose. To play the whole game; to cheat. To play least in...

Dictionary of The Vulgar Tongue by Francis Grose
play
to play, to boil, spoken of a kettle, pot, or other vessel full of liquor ; playing hot, boiling hot...

A glossary of provincial and local words used in England by Francis Grose
Match play
·add. ·- Play in which the score is reckoned by counting the holes won or lost by each side; — dist...

Webster's Dictionary of the English Language
Medal play
·add. ·- Play in which the score is reckoned by counting the number of strokes. ...

Webster's Dictionary of the English Language
Le Tennis Play
Two tenements so called in the parish of Allhallows the Less formerly belonging to St. Thomas of Aco...

A Dictionary of London by Henry A Harben.
to play possum
'He's playing possum with you,' is a common expression at the South and West, and means that he is d...

Dictionary of American Words And Phrases by John Russell Bartlett.
play-actor
A theatrical performer. The expression is objectionable, because the term actor is itself a technica...

Dictionary of American Words And Phrases by John Russell Bartlett.
Play House Yard
East out of Water Lane, Blackfriars, to Church Entry. In Farringdon Ward Within (P.O. Directory). F...

A Dictionary of London by Henry A Harben.
tower hill play
A slap on the face, and a kick on the breech. ...

Dictionary of The Vulgar Tongue by Francis Grose
to play second fiddle
is to take an inferior part in any project or undertaking. A metaphor borrowed from a musical perfor...

Dictionary of American Words And Phrases by John Russell Bartlett.