play up

3 meanings

Meanings
  1. 1 behave badly or cause problems (a child, a machine) C1
  2. 2 hurt or cause pain, often coming and going (a body part or illness) C1
  3. 3 emphasise or exaggerate something to make it seem more important C1
1 play up

behave badly or cause problems (a child, a machine)

C1

What does "play up" mean in this sense?

To play up means to behave badly or cause problems in a way that is frustrating and hard to control. It is used in two closely related situations: when children or young people are being difficult and uncooperative, or when a machine or device is not working as it should. The phrase captures that sense of something failing to do what it is supposed to do, whether that is a child following rules or a boiler producing heat. It is a distinctly informal, conversational expression — almost exclusively British English — and you are far more likely to hear it in speech or a text message than in anything written. Because the misbehaviour is usually ongoing or keeps happening repeatedly, the phrase almost always appears in a continuous form, often paired with words like 'again', 'always', or 'keeps'.

Examples

How to use it

subject + play up

The most common pattern: the subject (a child, group of children, or a device) simply plays up with nothing following 'up'.

The kids have been playing up all morning and I'm exhausted.

subject + keep + playing up

Using 'keep' before the -ing form emphasises that the bad behaviour or malfunction is frustratingly repeated.

The router keeps playing up — we've had to restart it three times today.

subject + start + playing up

Use 'start playing up' to describe the moment when the trouble began.

The washing machine started playing up right in the middle of a full load.

subject + play up + again

Adding 'again' signals that this is not the first time, reinforcing the habitual annoyance.

Is the heating playing up again? It was fine yesterday.

subject + be + playing up + time expression

A time expression like 'all day', 'lately', or 'this week' is often added to show how long the problem has been going on.

My laptop has been playing up all week — I think it needs a new battery.

Common Collocations

the kidsthe carthe printerthe boilermy phonethe computer

Common Mistakes

Adding an object after 'up'

This sense of 'play up' is intransitive, meaning nothing comes after 'up'. Adding an object produces an ungrammatical sentence — and would shift the meaning towards a completely different sense of the phrase.

✗ The teacher said the students were playing up the class.
✓ The teacher said the students were playing up.
Confusing it with the body-part sense

When a body part like a knee or back 'plays up', it means it is causing pain — this is a different sense. When children or machines 'play up', they are causing trouble or malfunctioning, not causing physical discomfort.

✗ The printer is playing up my desk all afternoon.
✓ The printer has been playing up all afternoon.
Using it in formal or academic writing

This is an informal, spoken British English phrase. In formal writing, it is better to use 'misbehave' for children or 'malfunction' for devices.

✗ The apparatus played up during the experiment, yielding unreliable results.
✓ The apparatus malfunctioned during the experiment, yielding unreliable results.

Usage

This is informal British English, most natural in speech or casual writing. It almost always appears in continuous tenses ('it's been playing up all day') because it describes ongoing or repeated annoying behaviour.

2 play up

hurt or cause pain, often coming and going (a body part or illness)

C1

Sense 2: What does "play up" mean?

This sense of 'play up' describes a body part or chronic condition that causes pain or discomfort, particularly when the trouble comes and goes rather than being constant. It is strongly associated with British and Australian English, and fits naturally into casual conversation about recurring health complaints — a dodgy knee, persistent back pain, or arthritis that flares in bad weather. The phrase nearly always implies the problem is not new: it is something the speaker has dealt with before, which is why 'again' so often appears alongside it. Unlike clinical language, 'play up' carries a tone of weary familiarity, as if the speaker is resigned to this particular body part being troublesome. In American English, 'act up' tends to cover the same ground.

Examples

How to use it

body part / condition + play up

The subject is always the body part or medical condition causing trouble — never a person or machine in this sense.

My hip has been playing up all week, so I've been avoiding the gym.

body part / condition + play up + again

Adding 'again' is extremely natural and underlines the recurring nature of the problem.

His sciatica is playing up again — he can barely sit at his desk.

body part / condition + play up + in + weather / conditions

Weather or environmental conditions are frequently given as a trigger for the discomfort.

Her old ankle injury always plays up in cold, wet weather.

body part / condition + start / begin + playing up

Using 'start' or 'begin' before the gerund describes the moment the discomfort sets in.

My stomach started playing up about an hour after dinner.

body part / condition + play up + a bit / quite badly

Degree adverbs like 'a bit' or 'quite badly' are used to indicate how severe the discomfort is.

My shoulder's been playing up quite badly this week — I should probably see a physio.

Common Collocations

my knee is playing upmy back has been playing upold injury playing uparthritis playing upplaying up againplaying up in the cold

Common Mistakes

Using a person or machine as the subject

In this sense, only a body part or medical condition can be the subject. If a person or machine is the subject, 'play up' shifts to a completely different meaning — misbehaving or malfunctioning.

✗ I was playing up because of the pain.
✓ My knee was playing up because of the pain.
Using future simple for predicted pain

Saying 'my back will play up' sounds unnatural because this phrasal verb is used to describe pain that is happening or has happened, not to make predictions. Use the present or past forms instead.

✗ I can't go hiking — my knee will play up.
✓ I can't go hiking — my knee always plays up on long walks.
Using present perfect simple instead of continuous

For intermittent, ongoing pain, the present perfect continuous feels much more natural than the present perfect simple, because it emphasises the recurring nature over a period of time.

✗ My back has played up a lot recently.
✓ My back has been playing up a lot recently.

Usage

This sense is common in British and Australian English but rare in American English, where 'act up' is more typical. It describes intermittent or recurring pain, not a sudden new injury.

3 play sth up

emphasise or exaggerate something to make it seem more important

C1

Sense 3: What does "play sth up" mean?

To play up something means to deliberately emphasise it or make it seem more significant than it perhaps is, often to achieve a particular goal or create a favourable impression. The phrase frequently carries a mildly critical undertone, suggesting that the emphasis involves a degree of distortion or manipulation — that someone is not just highlighting a fact but strategically inflating its importance. It is commonly used in political commentary, media analysis, and discussions of persuasion, where speakers or writers scrutinise how information is framed. A politician might play up their humble origins to appeal to ordinary voters, or a headline might play up a minor scientific finding to attract clicks. The phrase can apply equally to individuals, institutions, reports, or media outlets doing the foregrounding — making it a versatile tool for critical analysis.

Examples

How to use it

play up + noun phrase

The most common structure: a person, organisation, or text plays up an abstract quality, risk, or characteristic as the direct object.

The documentary plays up the tension between the two communities to make the story more compelling.

play + noun phrase + up

Separation is equally natural, especially with shorter noun objects, and can add a slight emphasis to the object.

The company played the environmental benefits up in its marketing campaign, despite the evidence being limited.

play + pronoun + up

When the object is a pronoun, separation is obligatory — the pronoun must come between the verb and the particle.

Her connection to the local area was an asset, and she played it up throughout the campaign.

be played up (by + agent)

The passive is natural and fairly common, particularly in analytical writing where the focus is on what is being exaggerated rather than who is doing it.

The ideological differences between the two parties were played up by commentators eager to dramatise the election.

tend to / try to / want to + play up + noun phrase

This phrasal verb frequently appears after modal-like verbs that describe habitual behaviour or intention, which suits its connotation of deliberate strategy.

Tabloid newspapers tend to play up celebrity feuds because conflict drives reader engagement.

Common Collocations

play up the risksplay up one's strengthsplay up the differencesplay up the threatplay up the dramaplay it up

Common Mistakes

Confusing play up with play down

'Play up' means to exaggerate or foreground something, while 'play down' is its direct opposite — to minimise or reduce the perceived importance of something. These are sometimes swapped, reversing the intended meaning entirely.

✗ The spokesperson tried to play up the seriousness of the incident to reassure the public.
✓ The spokesperson tried to play down the seriousness of the incident to reassure the public. (Or: played up the incident's seriousness to alarm the public.)
Omitting the direct object

In this sense, 'play up' always requires a direct object — the thing being emphasised or exaggerated. Using it without an object will either sound incomplete or accidentally activate a different meaning of the phrase (such as misbehaving or malfunctioning).

✗ The report really played up, especially in its treatment of economic risk.
✓ The report really played up the economic risks, while barely acknowledging the potential benefits.
Wrong pronoun placement

When the object is a pronoun, it must go between 'play' and 'up'. Placing the pronoun after 'up' is ungrammatical in English.

✗ She knew her international experience was an advantage, so she played up it.
✓ She knew her international experience was an advantage, so she played it up.

Usage

This sense is neutral to slightly informal and is common in both British and American English, especially in journalism and political commentary. It often implies the emphasis is slightly exaggerated or self-serving, so use it carefully when describing others' communication.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is 'play up' British English? Would Americans understand it?

Yes, this sense of 'play up' is predominantly British English. American speakers would more naturally say 'act up' to describe children misbehaving or a device malfunctioning. Most American speakers would understand 'play up' from context, but it would sound distinctly British to them.

Does 'play up' always mean misbehaving or malfunctioning? I've seen it used differently.

Yes, 'play up' has other senses. It can describe a body part causing pain (e.g. 'my back is playing up') or deliberately exaggerating something to your advantage (e.g. 'she played up her qualifications'). This entry covers only the misbehaving or malfunctioning sense, where the subject is children or a device.

Why does 'play up' almost always seem to appear in continuous tenses?

Because it typically describes behaviour that is ongoing, repeated, or happening right now — which is exactly what continuous aspect expresses in English. Saying 'the car is playing up' or 'the kids have been playing up all day' captures that sense of something being a persistent nuisance. Using the simple present ('the car plays up') sounds more like a stated fact about its general nature, which is less common.

Can I use 'play up' to talk about software or apps, or just physical devices?

You can use it for software and apps too — anything technological that is behaving unreliably. 'The app has been playing up since the update' or 'the website keeps playing up' are both natural. The key is that it should be something that is supposed to work reliably but isn't.

Can 'play up' describe adults behaving badly, or only children?

It can technically describe adults, but this is much less common and would usually carry a slightly humorous or dismissive tone — as if treating the adult like a naughty child. In everyday use, it almost always refers to children or young students. For adult misbehaviour in a neutral context, other expressions would feel more natural.

Does 'play up' only work in British English for this meaning?

It is most common in British and Australian English, yes. American English speakers are more likely to say 'act up' when talking about a body part causing pain or trouble. If you are writing for an American audience, 'act up' may feel more natural to them, though 'play up' is widely understood.

Can I use 'play up' for a sudden new injury, like when I twist my ankle?

Not really — 'play up' is best suited to recurring or chronic problems, like an old injury, arthritis, or a condition that flares up from time to time. For a sudden new injury, you would more naturally say something like 'I hurt my ankle' or 'my ankle is killing me'.

Does 'play up' always mean something painful, or can it refer to milder discomfort?

It covers a range of discomfort, not necessarily severe pain. People use it for anything from a mildly achy knee to quite debilitating back trouble. The key idea is that a part of the body is causing some kind of unwanted physical trouble, whatever the intensity.

Is it natural to say 'it's playing up' without naming the body part?

It is possible if the context makes clear what 'it' refers to — for example, if you have just mentioned your knee in the previous sentence. However, speakers usually name the body part explicitly to avoid confusion, especially since 'play up' has other senses where the subject could be a machine or a child.

Can I use 'play up' in formal or medical writing?

No — this is firmly an informal, conversational expression. In a medical context or formal writing, you would use language like 'the patient is experiencing intermittent pain in the knee' or 'the condition has been causing recurring discomfort'. Reserve 'play up' for everyday speech and informal written contexts like messages or casual blog posts.

Does 'play up' always suggest that someone is being dishonest or misleading?

Not always, but it does carry a mildly critical connotation in most contexts. It implies that the emphasis is somewhat strategic or self-serving — that something is being made to appear more significant than a neutral account would suggest. Whether that crosses into actual dishonesty depends on context, and the phrase itself remains neutral enough to describe the technique without fully condemning it.

I know 'play up' can mean something completely different in British English — how do I know which meaning is being used?

The key is whether there is a direct object referring to something being highlighted or exaggerated. In the 'emphasise' sense, 'play up' always takes a noun object such as a risk, strength, or difference. If there is no such object — for example, 'the kids are playing up' or 'my back is playing up' — then a different sense is being used. Context and sentence structure make the distinction clear very quickly.

What kinds of things can be 'played up'? Are there restrictions on the object?

The object is almost always an abstract noun or concept — qualities, risks, differences, connections, threats, or characteristics. Concrete physical objects are rarely played up; you would not typically say 'she played up the chair'. The most natural collocations involve things like playing up one's strengths, the dangers, the significance, or the contrast between two things.

Can 'play up' be used to describe what a text or report does, or only what a person does?

It works very naturally with non-human subjects such as reports, articles, speeches, headlines, and campaigns. Saying 'the report plays up the uncertainty' or 'the advertisement plays up the product's exclusivity' is entirely idiomatic. This makes it especially useful in media and rhetorical analysis, where you are commenting on how content frames information rather than attributing intent to a specific individual.

Is it natural to use 'play up' in a structure that contrasts what is emphasised with what is ignored?

Yes — contrastive structures are particularly common and feel very natural with this phrasal verb. Patterns like 'plays up X while downplaying Y' or 'plays up X while ignoring Z' reflect how the phrase is often used in critical analysis. This pairing captures the idea that emphasis in one area frequently comes at the expense of attention to another.

Ready to practise?

Practise 1,000+ English phrasal verbs with interactive gap-fill exercises.

Start Practising →