play safe: meaning and explanation
to play safe = to be cautious and minimise risks. e.g. I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about, but I still think we should play safe and see a doctor.
We can also say play it safe, e.g. I’m probably being overcautious but I’m going to play it safe and allow an extra hour to get to the airport in time.
There are many situations in which there is a risk of something bad happening (e.g. it might rain on your way to work). Some people are happy to take this risk (and not take an umbrella). Other people would prefer to play it safe (and take an umbrella).
Have a go at these micro-dictation exercises to hear this expression being used in context – how much can you understand?
Listening exercises
Dictation #1
Accent: North America
About the sentence
…just in case…
just in case = just to be prepared. e.g. I don’t think we’ll need any money at the wedding, but we should take some just in case.
Dictation #2
Accent: Ireland
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Dictation #3
Accent: England (RP)
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Extra practice
Here are some questions/links to help you learn the new vocabulary:
- Are you a naturally cautious person, or do you generally play it safe?
- Can you think of an example of a time when you played it safe? Or a time when you regret not playing it safe?
I definitely play it safe with my job because every single detail it is important to my team and everything rely on me as a boss, but if we talk about life I think it is good to take some risk as teenagers say you only live once.
Hi Elizabeth! Welcome to MicroEnglish 🙂
Good examples, well done. I have a couple of suggestions”
– Careful with the double subject in this sentence: “Every single detail (it) is important”. Both ‘every single detail’ and ‘it’ are subjects, so you only need one.
– It should be: “Everything/everybody relies on me as boss”.
– It should be: “It is good to take some risks“.
Well done!