play off

mettere l’uno contro l’altro

Far competere o litigare altre persone tra loro per trarne un vantaggio.

In inglese semplice: To make people compete or argue with each other so that you gain an advantage.

• She played the two rivals off against each other.
• The manager played off his employees to keep control.
• Are they playing us off against the other team?

Come si usa: play someone off against someone (The buyer played one supplier off against another.)

Sinonimi: pit against, set against

Contrari: unite

Espressioni comuni: play off rivals, play off two sides

minimizzare, sdrammatizzare

Trattare qualcosa come meno grave o imbarazzante di quanto sia davvero.

In inglese semplice: To treat something as less serious or embarrassing than it really is.

• He tried to play off his mistake.
• She played the injury off as nothing serious.
• Can you really play off that insult as a joke?

Come si usa: play something off as something (She played the mistake off as a joke.); play something off (He played his embarrassment off with a smile.)

Sinonimi: play down, brush off, make light of

Contrari: emphasize

Espressioni comuni: play off something, play off a mistake

disputare uno spareggio

Disputare una partita aggiuntiva per stabilire il vincitore.

In inglese semplice: Teams or players compete in an extra match to decide a winner.

• The teams will play off tomorrow.
• They played off for the last place in the final.
• Who will we play off against?

Come si usa: play off against someone (The two finalists will play off against each other.)

Sinonimi: compete

Espressioni comuni: play off against someone, teams play off