played the man, not the ball

A form of play the man

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Meanings

verb
  1. participlepastsimple past and past participle of play the man, not the ball
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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