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Synonyms

ploy

American  
[ploi] / plɔɪ /

noun

  1. a maneuver or stratagem, as in conversation, to gain the advantage.

    Synonyms:
    gambit, wile, subterfuge, ruse, tactic

verb (used with object)

  1. Military Archaic. to move (troops) from a line into a column.

verb (used without object)

  1. Military Archaic. to move from a line into a column.

ploy British  
/ plɔɪ /

noun

  1. a manoeuvre or tactic in a game, conversation, etc; stratagem; gambit

  2. any business, job, hobby, etc, with which one is occupied

    angling is his latest ploy

  3. a frolic, escapade, or practical joke

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • counterploy noun

Etymology

Origin of ploy

1475–85; earlier ploye to bend < Middle French ployer ( French plier ) < Latin plicāre to fold, ply 2; see deploy

Explanation

A ploy is a clever plan that helps you get what you want. A manipulative little girl might shed tears simply as a ploy to get her mother to buy her ice cream. A politician might add amendments to a bill as a ploy to delay voting, or a hooligan might yell, "Fire!" in a movie theater as a ploy to sneak his friends in. A sneaky move in a game is a ploy, and sensational news about a celebrity can be just a ploy to get him more media attention. The first recorded use of ploy was in 1722, meaning "anything with which one amuses oneself" in Scottish and Northern English dialects.

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

This loan-blocking exercise may be a shakedown ploy.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026

The NBA's ploy to inject intensity into this weekend's All-Star Game with a new US-versus-the-world format has divided basketball's biggest superstars before a single slam dunk has been scored.

From Barron's • Feb. 14, 2026

But the author said her cancer update "wasn't a ploy to get sympathy-sales for release day".

From BBC • Jan. 14, 2026

A clever ploy at first, the idea quickly turns into a nightmare primed for uncomfortable comedy.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 22, 2025

Every word she said persuaded Theon that this was all some ploy.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.