players

noun

plural of player
1
as in instrumentalists
a person who plays a musical instrument a horn player

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in actors
one who acts professionally (as in a play, movie, or television show) a troupe of players used to give performances on the town green

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in participants
one who takes part in something a significant player in the negotiations

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of players Opposing players could have their own grievances as well if they were found to have wrongly missed out on performance bonuses. — Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 7 Oct. 2026 Getting a word with a small number of guesses is a source of pride for players. — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026 The usual players at Nobu Hotels are involved here, namely Chef Nobu Matsuhisa and actor Robert De Niro. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Oct. 2026 Expect that while the Lakers have no pressing injury concerns, most of the key players will be on an early load management schedule. — Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2026 Kiffin's bunch has been bitten by the injury bug in recent weeks, so getting done with the blowout win as fast as possible may have been a benefit, but on the other hand, the Tigers were able to play a lot of players well down the depth chart. — Mark Harris Outkick, FOXNews.com, 6 Oct. 2026 The Board of Control for Cricket in India issued show-cause notices to both players and briefly suspended them from the national team. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 30 Sep. 2026 Right-hander Jonathan Bowlan and infielder Otto Kemp were included as the Phillies went with 14 position players. — ABC News, 29 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for players
  1. instrumentalists
  2. actors
  3. participants
  4. musicians
  5. performers
  6. participators
  7. artists
  8. actresses
Noun
  • Love, at 85 years old, is the sole member of the original Beach Boys lineup who still tours under that name, performing all their classic, SPF-friendly hits with younger instrumentalists.
    — Devon Ivie, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Even Rodrigo’s backing band, full of absolutely shredding women instrumentalists, played beside her on equal footing for exquisitely tasteful, post-punky revisions of songs across her three albums.
    — Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of instrumentalists
Noun
  • The Haunting at The Ridge has become spookier in its third year with more actors and a live stage show with the Cabaret Sinister.
    — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 2 Oct. 2026
  • The actors who work best are the ones who give themselves over to his sense of mischief and permissiveness.
    — E. Alex Jung, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of actors
Noun
  • Rappers Lucki and Playboi Carti were seen in videos posted to social media, though the cause of the fight and its participants remain unclear.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026
  • The Associated Press spoke last week to participants and doctors at the health center where the trial is taking place in the eastern province of Ituri, the epicenter of the outbreak.
    — CONSTANT SAME BAGALWA, Arkansas Online, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of participants
Noun
  • The anniversary drew a mix of musicians, designers and cultural figures, including Travis Barker, Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys, Quavo and Erica Fontaine, Kanye West, North West and Lil Pump.
    — Ryma Chikhoune, Footwear News, 5 Oct. 2026
  • The name comes from the macabre pop-culture reference, the 27 Club, whose members include a group of musicians who died prematurely at that age.
    — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of musicians
Noun
  • Alaska, Hawaiian are consistent performers The AQR also singled out Alaska Airlines as the steadiest performer in the industry.
    — Christopher Elliott, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2025
Definition of performers
Noun
  • And in doing so, Gunther often lulls crowds into becoming sporting event spectators rather than the raucous participators that most other wrestlers try to draw out of them.
    — Sean Neumann, PEOPLE, 12 Dec. 2025
Definition of participators
Noun
  • Some of my favorite artists were doing moments of silence at their concerts for this little old lady from suburban Illinois who never had any ambition beyond just trying to help people.
    — Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 3 Oct. 2026
  • The happiness was real, for a time, but the two artists, each with his own distinct problems and needs, were not going to be happy together, or with anyone else, for long.
    — Alan Hollinghurst, The New York Review of Books, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of artists
Noun
  • This luxurious adaptation of John Steinbeck's classic novel East of Eden, which tracks the dramatic entanglements of the Trask and Hamilton families in California's Salinas Valley, stars Florence Pugh, one of our favorite actresses right now.
    — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 29 Sep. 2026
  • The evening was a fitting toast to the shoe maestro, who celebrated his past, present and future alongside the Milan Fashion Week crowd and influential actresses and models, including Naomi Watts.
    — Katie Abel, Footwear News, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of actresses

Browse Nearby Words

player
players
playfellow
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Cite this Entry

“Players.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/players. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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