play the man, not the ball

A form of play the man and not the ball — To attack an opponent instead of attacking the ball, which is usually being controlled by the attacked player at the time.

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Meanings

verbplay the man, not the ball (third-person singular simple present plays the man, not the ball, present participle playing the man, not the ball, simple past and past participle played the man, not the ball)

present singular third person plays the man, not the ball · participle present playing the man, not the ball · participle past played the man, not the ball · past played the man, not the ball

  1. alternativeAlternative form of play the man and not the ball.
Cite this entry
APA

play the man, not the ball. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/play%20the%20man%2C%20not%20the%20ball

MLA

“play the man, not the ball.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/play%20the%20man%2C%20not%20the%20ball. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “play the man, not the ball,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/play%20the%20man%2C%20not%20the%20ball.

Source: play the man, not the ball on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.