Antonyms for play by ear
| Grammar : Verb |
| Spell : pley |
| Phonetic Transcription : pleɪ |
Definition of play by ear
Origin :- Old English plegan, plegian "move rapidly, occupy or busy oneself, exercise; frolic; make sport of, mock; perform music," from West Germanic *plegan "occupy oneself about" (cf. Old Saxon plegan "vouch for, take charge of," Old Frisian plega "tend to," Middle Dutch pleyen "to rejoice, be glad," German pflegen "take care of, cultivate"), from PIE root *dlegh- "to engage oneself," forming words in Celtic, Germanic, Slavic, and possibly Latin.
- Meaning "to take part in a game" is from c.1200. Opposed to work (v.) since late 14c. Related: Played; playing. To play up "emphasize" is from 1909; to play down "minimize" is from 1930; to play along "cooperate" is from 1929. To play with oneself "masturbate" is from 1896; play for keeps is from 1861, originally of marbles or other children's games with tokens. To play second fiddle in the figurative sense is from 1809 ("Gil Blas"). To play into the hands (of someone) is from 1705. To play the _______ card is attested from 1886; to play fair is from mid-15c. To play (something) safe is from 1911; to play favorites is attested from 1902. For play the field see field (n.).
- As in make up : verb create
- As in wing it : verb improvise
- As in play it by ear : verb take a situation as it comes
- As in devise : verb conceive, dream up
- As in extemporize : verb improvise
Synonyms for play by ear
- ad-lib
- arrange
- blend
- blueprint
- brainstorm
- cast
- chart
- cogitate
- coin
- combine
- come up with
- compose
- compound
- concoct
- construct
- contrive
- cook up
- craft
- create
- dash out
- design
- devise
- discover
- do off the top of your head
- do offhand
- dope out
- dream up
- fabricate
- fabulize
- fake it
- fashion
- fictionalize
- fix
- forge
- form
- formulate
- frame
- fuse
- get off
- hatch
- head trip
- imagine
- improv
- improvisate
- improvise
- intrigue
- invent
- join
- knock off
- machinate
- make
- make do
- make it up as one goes along
- make up
- mastermind
- meld
- merge
- mingle
- mix
- originate
- plan
- play by ear
- play it by ear
- plot
- prepare
- pretend
- project
- put together
- ready
- scheme
- shape
- spark
- speak off the cuff
- storify
- think on one's feet
- think up
- throw together
- toss off
- trump up
- vamp
- whip up
- wing it
- work out
- write
Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019