play\ safe

play\ safe
• play (it) safe
v. phr. informal
To be very careful; accept small gains or none to avoid loss; avoid danger for the sake of safety.

He got tired as the game went on, and began to play safe.

Tom didn't know what the other driver would do, so he played it safe and stopped his own car.


Словарь американских идиом. — СПб., Изд-во "Лань". . 1997.

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  • play safe — To take no risks • • • Main Entry: ↑play play safe 1. To act in a manner that minimizes the risk of defeat, injury or loss 2. To act in a cautious way • • • Main Entry: ↑safe * * * play (or play it) safe take precaution …   Useful english dictionary

  • play safe — play (it) safe ► to decide not to take risks: »The federal government often plays it safe by funding research that is likely to succeed but may have only a slight impact. »The biggest companies usually play safe and hire top legal firms from… …   Financial and business terms

  • play safe — play (it) safe informal to be careful and not take risks. We decided to play safe and paint the walls a fairly neutral colour. They re playing it safe by not investing too much money until they ve seen the first year s accounts …   New idioms dictionary

  • play safe — index hedge Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • play safe — or[play it safe] {v. phr.}, {informal} To be very careful; accept small gains or none to avoid loss; avoid danger for the sake of safety. * /He got tired as the game went on, and began to play safe./ * /Tom didn t know what the other driver would …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • play safe — or[play it safe] {v. phr.}, {informal} To be very careful; accept small gains or none to avoid loss; avoid danger for the sake of safety. * /He got tired as the game went on, and began to play safe./ * /Tom didn t know what the other driver would …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • play safe — ► play (or play it) safe avoid taking risks. Main Entry: ↑play …   English terms dictionary

  • play safe — Synonyms and related words: clear the decks, consider every angle, forearm, guard against, hedge, leave out nothing, make sure, make sure against, overlook no possibility, prepare for, protect, provide a hedge, provide against, provide for, reef… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • play safe — behave in a cautious manner …   English contemporary dictionary

  • play safe —  Take no risks …   A concise dictionary of English slang

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