Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

play it safe

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.96 in modern English

Syllables
play it safe
IPA
18
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
1
Syllables
9
Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To take a cautious, risk-free approach.

Example Sentences

Inflected Forms

plays it safe (present, singular) playing it safe (participle, present) played it safe (participle, past) played it safe (past) play safe (alternative)

Phrases

hedge one's bets on the safe side

Frequently Paired Words

hedge one's bets on the safe side

Antonyms

play big go all in

Questions

What does play it safe mean?
To take a cautious, risk-free approach.

How to pronounce play it safe

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “play it safe”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “play it safe”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “play it safe” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.