Synonyms of play up

11 similar words · 1 opposite word

Another word for play up is three-sheet. Other synonyms of play up are exaggerate, overdo and overstate.

Synonyms and similar words for play up

overemphasizeTo place too much emphasis on; to overstate the importance of.
overstateTo exaggerate; to state or claim to a greater degree than reality.
stretchTo make inaccurate by exaggeration.
big up slangTo proclaim or exaggerate the importance of; to promote.
exaggerateTo overstate, to describe more than the fact.
overdoTo do too much; to exceed what is proper or true in doing; to carry too far.
three-sheetTo exaggerate, hype up, or show off.
cut it fat UK, obsoleteTo exaggerate or show off.
hyperbolize archaicTo represent or talk about with hyperbole.
overcharge datedTo exaggerate.

play downTo make or attempt to make something seem less important, likely, or obvious.

verb Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see play, up.
verb To misbehave.
verb To make or attempt to make something appear more important, likely, or obvious; to showcase or highlight.

What is another word for play up?: Play up has 11 synonyms on Word.ws, such as three-sheet, exaggerate, overdo and overstate.
What is the opposite of play up?: The opposite of play up is play down.
What does play up mean?: Play up means used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see play, up.

Adapted from Wiktionary: play up (page history and authors) and the entries of the words listed. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws grouped the synonyms and antonyms by meaning and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “Synonyms of play up.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/synonyms/play_up. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.