As a joke. [from 14th c.]
You mustn't take what I said so seriously, it was only said in play.
In operation, active, currently valid. [from 17th c.]
It's hard to tell which physical forces are in play at this altitude.
This deadly scenario with this hurricane is still in play, so please take precaution.
(sports) Available to be played according to the rules of the game in question; within the boundaries of the pitch etc. [from 18th c.]
The ball is in play for an average of just seven minutes out of a sixty-minute game.
(politics) Capable of being won by more than one party or candidate.
Though the state has not changed hands in 20 years, the latest polls suggest it may now be in play.
(business) Open to a takeover bid. [from 20th c.]
Despite the best efforts of the executive committee, it seems the company is now in play.
Mammals of every species indulge in play. Games are Nature's way of preparing us to face difficult realities. Daniel Suarez
The forces that are in play on climate change essentially revolve around the generation of power, the transportation of goods and services and people, and the sorts of materials that we use to fuel the whole of our civilisation. Peter Garrett
I'd never been in play long enough for the flowers to die in the dressing room. Mercedes McCambridge
Much can be learned in play that will afterwards be of use when the circumstances demand it. John Amos Comenius
Only in dreams, in poetry, in play do we sometimes arrive at what we were before we were this thing that, who knows, we are. Julio Cortázar
Avoid bawling in conversation or in play. Latin Proverb