game
[noun]
Synonyms:
- pastime, amusement, distraction, diversion, entertainment, lark, recreation, sport
- match, competition, contest, event, head-to-head, meeting, tournament
- wild animals, prey, quarry
- scheme, design, plan, plot, ploy, stratagem, tactic, trick
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- brave, courageous, gallant, gritty, intrepid, persistent, plucky, spirited
- willing, desirous, eager, interested, keen, prepared, ready

---

Contrasted words: business, duty, labor, study, toil
Related Words: kill, ravin, victim

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. game¹ S1 W1 /ɡeɪm/ noun
[Language: Old English; Origin: gamen]

1. ACTIVITY OR SPORT [countable]
a) an activity or sport in which people compete with each other according to agreed rules:
We used to love playing games like chess or backgammon.
b) an occasion when a game is played ⇒ match:
Did you see the game on TV last night?
a game of tennis/football etc
Would you like to have a game of tennis?
game against/with
England’s World Cup game against Holland ⇒ ball game, board game, video game, war game

2. games [plural]
a) a large organized sports event:
the Olympic Games
b) British English organized sports as a school subject or lesson Synonym : PE:
We have games on Thursdays.
a games lesson

3. PART OF A MATCH [countable] one of the parts into which a single match is divided, for example in tennis or bridge¹(4):
Graf leads, two games to one.

4. CHILDREN [countable] a children’s activity in which they play with toys, pretend to be someone else etc
game of
a game of hide-and-seek
The boys were playing a game in the backyard.

5. SKILL sb’s game how well someone plays a particular game or sport
improve/raise your game
Liam’s taking lessons to improve his game.
the strongest aspect of his game

6. give the game away to spoil a surprise or secret by doing or saying something that lets someone guess what the secret is:
Lynn gave the game away by laughing when Kim walked in.

7. beat somebody at their own game (also play somebody at their own game British English) to beat someone or fight back against them by using the same methods that they use

8. NOT SERIOUS be a game to be something that you do to enjoy yourself rather than for a serious purpose:
It’s just a game to them. They don’t care what happens.

9. play games (with somebody)
a) to behave in a dishonest or unfair way in order to get what you want:
Are you sure he’s really interested, and not just playing silly games with you?
b) to not be serious about doing something:
We want a deal. We’re not interested in playing games.

10. ANIMALS/BIRDS [uncountable] wild animals, birds, and fish that are hunted for food, especially as a sport:
game birds ⇒ big game

11. the only game in town used to say that something is the only possible choice in a situation:
The Church of England is no longer the only game in town.

12. BUSINESS [singular] informal an area of work or business:
I’ve been in this game for over ten years.

13. what’s her/your etc game? British English spoken used to ask what the true reason for someone’s behaviour is:
Reg is being very nice all of a sudden. What’s his game?

14. the game’s up spoken used to tell someone that something wrong or dishonest that they have done has been discovered:
Come out, Don. The game’s up.

15. a game of chance a game in which you risk money on the result:
Poker is a game of chance.

16. somebody got game American English informal used to say that someone is very skilful at doing something, especially a sport

17. be on the game British English informal to be a prostitute

18. game on spoken said when the balance of a sports match or competition changes, and both sides suddenly have a chance of winning

19. game over informal said to emphasize that an event or activity is completely finished

20. make game of somebody old-fashioned to make fun of someone
⇒ fair game, ⇒ fun and games at fun¹(5), ⇒ the name of the game at name¹(10), ⇒ a mug’s game at mug¹(5)

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. game² adjective
[Sense 1: Date: 1700-1800; Origin: ⇒ game¹]
[Sense 2: Date: 1700-1800; Origin: Perhaps from Old French gambi 'bent']

1. willing to try something dangerous, new, or difficult:
Okay. I’m game if you are.
game for
He’s always game for a laugh.
game to do something
‘Who’s game to have a try?’

2. game leg old-fashioned an injured or painful leg
—gamely adverb

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

III. game³ /ɡeɪm/ verb American English
game the system to use rules or laws to get what you want in an unfair but legal way

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

game
noun
I. activity/sport
ADJ. ball, board, computer, video | good This is a good game for getting people to mix.
competitive competitive games in which there is always a winner and a loser
team How I hated team games at school!
party | children's children's party games like Musical Chairs
indoor, outdoor finding good indoor games for children
VERB + GAME have, play Shall we have a game of chess?
draw, lose, win We won the first game and drew the second.
PREP. ~ against/with, ~ of To pass the time, we played a game of cards.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

game
II. sports match
ADJ. big (= important) The team are in training for their big game.
first, opening | final, last | away, home | Cup, League their first League game of the season
VERB + GAME have, play United are playing a home game this week.
draw, lose, win
PREP. ~ against/with He's hoping to be fit before next week's game with Liverpool.
~ of a game of tennis

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

game
III. how sb plays
ADJ. good, great That girl plays a great game of bridge.
VERB + GAME have, play Trescothick had a good game and was man of the match.
improve, raise Hendry raised his game to collect the £40,000 first prize.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

game
IV. games: sports competition
ADJ. Commonwealth, Olympic
VERB + GAME compete in, participate in, take part in She's hoping to participate in the next Olympic Games.
host Beijing's bid to host the Olympic Games

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

game
V. business/activity
VERB + GAME be in How long have you been in this game?
GAME + NOUN ~ of the game of life/politics
PHRASES all part of the game Getting dirty was all part of the game to the kids.
new to this game I'm new to this game myself.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

game
VI. secret plan
ADJ. little, silly, stupid
VERB + GAME play I realized that he had been playing a stupid game with me.
put an end to, put a stop to I'll soon put an end to her silly little games.
give away Don't let him talk to anybody or he'll give the game away.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

game

play a game
They explained how to play the game.
see/watch a game
Did you see the game last night?
have a game British English
They were having a game of pool.
win/lose a game
A.C. Milan won the game with a last-minute goal.
Arsenal lost the game because of a mistake by their goalkeeper.
the game is tied (=both teams or players had the same score)
The game was tied 10-10 at halftime.
draw a game British English (=end the game with the same score as the opposing team or player)
We played badly and were lucky to draw the game.
a computer/video game
He was up all night playing computer games.
a card game
Bridge is a card game for four people.
a board/ball game
board games such as Monopoly and Scrabble
a team game
I wasn't very good at team games when I was at school.
a party game
What's your favourite party game?
a basketball/baseball etc game
He was watching a baseball game on TV.
a home game (=played at a team's own sports field)
Next Saturday Liverpool have a home game against Manchester United.
an away game (=played at an opposing team's sports field)
We didn't win any away games last season.
a league game (=played as part of a league competition)
There's a big league game against Chelsea on Saturday.
a cup game (=played as part of a cup competition)
He hopes to play in the cup game on Wednesday.
a playoff game American English (=one of a series of games played by the best teams in a competition to decide the final winner )
This is the first of their five playoff games.
a play-off game British English (=played to decide the winner after a previous game ended with both teams having equal points)
an indoor game
There is a hall for indoor games and social functions.
an outdoor game
Outdoor games are affected by the weather.
the rules of the game
It's against the rules of the game to pick up the ball.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

game
̈ɪɡeɪm
See: ahead of the game , love game , name of the game , play the game , at --- stage of the game

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲