What does "game" mean?
A playful or competitive activity.; A playful activity that may be unstructured; an amusement or pastime.
Game
/ɡeɪm/ adj, noun, verb, slang
adj, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A playful or competitive activity.; A playful activity that may be unstructured; an amusement or pastime.
- Grammar: game is listed as adj, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: acquiescent, action, adventurous, agreeable.
- Useful contrasts: averse, captive, concrete problem.
- Usage evidence: The French government has launched an online game that challenges taxpayers to balance the national budget.
How to use "game"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "game" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "game" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "game" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "game" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "game" is acting as adj, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "acquiescent" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "game", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A playful or competitive activity.; A playful activity that may be unstructured; an amusement or pastime. countable, uncountable
"Being a child is all fun and games."
- 2 an amusement or pastime wordnet
- 3 A playful or competitive activity.; An activity described by a set of rules, especially for the purpose of entertainment, often competitive or having an explicit goal. countable
"Games in the classroom can make learning fun."
- 4 a contest with rules to determine a winner wordnet
- 5 A playful or competitive activity.; A school subject during which sports are practised. UK, countable, in-plural, uncountable
"From time to time tracksuited boys ran past them, with all the deadly purpose and humourless concentration of those who enjoyed Games."
Show 27 more definitions
- 6 a single play of a sport or other contest wordnet
- 7 A playful or competitive activity.; A particular instance of playing a game. countable
"Sally won the game."
- 8 frivolous or trifling behavior wordnet
- 9 A playful or competitive activity.; That which is gained, such as the stake in a game. countable, uncountable
- 10 your occupation or line of work wordnet
- 11 A playful or competitive activity.; The number of points necessary to win a game. countable, uncountable
"In short whist, five points are game."
- 12 animal hunted for food or sport wordnet
- 13 A playful or competitive activity.; In some games, a point awarded to the player whose cards add up to the largest sum. countable, uncountable
- 14 the game equipment needed in order to play a particular game wordnet
- 15 A playful or competitive activity.; The equipment that enables such activity, particularly as packaged under a title. countable
"Some of the games in the closet we have on the computer as well."
- 16 a secret scheme to do something (especially something underhand or illegal) wordnet
- 17 A playful or competitive activity.; One's manner, style, or performance in playing a game. countable, uncountable
"Study can help your game of chess."
- 18 the flesh of wild animals that is used for food wordnet
- 19 A playful or competitive activity.; Ellipsis of video game. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, ellipsis
"There’s a sense here, as well as in games such as Limbo, that we’re making ourselves experience our children’s reality, trapped in the chaos that the adults have created."
- 20 (games) the score at a particular point or the score needed to win wordnet
- 21 A field of gainful activity, as an industry or profession. countable, informal, singular, usually
"When it comes to making sales, John is the best in the game."
- 22 (tennis) a division of play during which one player serves wordnet
- 23 A field of gainful activity, as an industry or profession.; The music industry. countable, informal, singular, uncountable, usually
"The rapper bragged about how he ran the game."
- 24 Something that resembles a game with rules, despite not being designed. countable, figuratively
"In the game of life, you may find yourself playing the waiting game far too often."
- 25 An exercise simulating warfare, whether computerized or involving human participants. countable
- 26 A questionable or unethical practice in pursuit of a goal. countable
"You want to borrow my credit card for a week? What's your game?"
- 27 Wild animals hunted for food. uncountable
"The forest has plenty of game."
- 28 The ability to seduce or woo someone, usually by strategy. informal, uncountable
"He didn't get anywhere with her because he had no game."
- 29 Lovemaking, flirtation. archaic, countable, uncountable
- 30 Prostitution. (Now chiefly in on the game.) countable, slang, uncountable
"ſet them downe, / For ſlottiſh ſpoyles of opportunitie; / And daughters of the game."
- 31 Mastery; the ability to excel at something. slang, uncountable
"What is game? Who got game? / Where's the game in life, behind the game behind the game / I got game, she's got game / We got game, they got game, he got game"
- 32 Diversion, entertainment. archaic, uncountable
"To ſet the minde on the racke of long meditation (you ſay) is a torment: to follow the ſwift foote of your hound alday long, hath no wearineſſe: what would you ſay of him that finds better game in his ſtudie, then you in the fielde, and would account your diſport his puniſhment? ſuch there are, though you doubt and wonder."
Verb
- 1 To gamble. intransitive
"an impressive protest against gaming, swearing, and all immoral practices which might forfeit divine aid in the great struggle for National Independence"
- 2 place a bet on wordnet
- 3 To play card games, board games, or video games. intransitive
"“The first few days after getting here are weird. It’s a version of cold turkey because you’ve been gaming around the clock and suddenly, nothing. […]”"
- 4 To exploit loopholes in a system or bureaucracy in a way which defeats or nullifies the spirit of the rules in effect, usually to obtain a result which otherwise would be unobtainable. transitive
"We'll bury them in paperwork, and game the system."
- 5 To perform premeditated seduction strategy. slang, transitive
"Returning briefly to his journalistic persona to interview Britney Spears, he finds himself gaming her, and she gives him her phone number."
Adjective
- 1 Willing and able to participate. colloquial
""[…] But what’s this long face about, Mr. Starbuck; wilt thou not chase the white whale? art not game for Moby Dick?”"
- 2 Injured, lame.
"You come with me and we'll have a cozy dinner and a pleasant talk together, and by that time your game ankle will carry you home very nicely, I am sure.""
- 3 That shows a tendency to continue to fight against another animal, despite being wounded, often severely.
- 4 Persistent, especially in senses similar to the above.
Adjective
- 1 willing to face danger wordnet
- 2 disabled in the feet or legs wordnet
Example
"The French government has launched an online game that challenges taxpayers to balance the national budget."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "game"?
Common synonyms include: acquiescent, action, adventurous, agreeable, aim, alacritous.
How do you use "game" in a sentence?
The French government has launched an online game that challenges taxpayers to balance the national budget.
How do you pronounce "game"?
Pronounced /ɡeɪm/.
Etymology
From Middle English game, gamen, gammen, from Old English gamen (“sport, joy, mirth, pastime, game, amusement, pleasure”), from Proto-West Germanic *gaman, from Proto-Germanic *gamaną (“amusement, pleasure, game", literally "participation, communion, people together”), from *ga- (collective prefix) + *mann- (“man”); or alternatively from *ga- + a root from Proto-Indo-European *men- (“to think, have in mind”). Cognate with Yola gaame, gaaume, gaume (“game”), Old Frisian game, gome (“joy, amusement, entertainment”), Dutch gemelijk (“cantankerous, crabbed”), Middle High German gamen (“joy, amusement, fun, pleasure”), Danish gammen (“merriment”), Icelandic, Norwegian Nynorsk gaman (“joy, fun”), Swedish gamman (“mirth, rejoicing, merriment”). Related to gammon, gamble.