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Meaning & use

a playbook

noun·Advanced

Last updated

UK/əˈpleɪbʊk/
US/əˈpleɪbʊk/

Meanings

  1. nouncountablesport

    A book or set of diagrams showing the moves and strategies a sports team uses.

    Grammar: Countable: you can say a playbook, two playbooks, the team's playbook.

    Patterns

    • a team's playbook
    • in the playbook
    • draw up a playbook

    The coach opened his playbook and showed the players a new trick play.

    Every quarterback spends hours learning the playbook before the season starts.

    Their defensive playbook is famous for its complicated blitz packages.

  2. nouncountablefigurative

    A set of established methods or plans that a person or group follows to achieve something.

    Grammar: Often figurative; common in business and politics: follow the playbook, rewrite the playbook.

    Patterns

    • follow the playbook
    • a playbook for something
    • rewrite the playbook

    The startup followed the same playbook as its rivals: grow fast, worry later.

    Her campaign manager wrote a playbook for winning small rural districts.

    If the old playbook no longer works, the company needs a new strategy.

Word forms

pluralplaybooks

Common combinations

follow the playbook
The new manager decided to follow the playbook that had worked before.
rewrite the playbook
Online sales have rewritten the playbook for small retailers.
a playbook for success
His memoir is basically a playbook for success in business.
the team's playbook
The team's playbook includes dozens of passing plays.
throw out the playbook
When the storm hit, they threw out the playbook and improvised.

Synonyms and how they differ

strategy
Strategy is the overall plan; a playbook is the concrete collection of moves or methods you draw from.
manual
A manual explains how to operate something; a playbook is more about tactics and winning.
blueprint
A blueprint is a detailed plan for one project, while a playbook can cover many recurring situations.

Word family

play noun
an action in a game, or a theatrical performance
playbook noun
the base noun; no common derived forms exist

Commonly confused: a playbook or playbill?

a playbook vs playbill

A playbill is a printed program for a theater show, not a book of sports plays.

Practice

The coach told the rookie to study the ______ so he would know every play.

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