play out

play out

1. (transitive) To play (a game etc.) to its conclusion.
   • 2011 February 12, Nabil Hassan, “Blackburn 0 - 0 Newcastle”, in BBC‎:

     Newcastle and Blackburn played out a goalless draw in a game that the Magpies dominated at Ewood Park.

2. (transitive) To play music to accompany the end of, or as a final segment in (a programme, broadcast etc.).

   And now, to play us out, please welcome Tom Waits.

3. (intransitive) To occur in a certain manner.

   Let's keep our heads down for a little while and see how things play out.

   My date played out a little differently than I imagined.

   • 2019 May 12, Alex McLevy, “Westeros faces a disastrous final battle on the penultimate Game of Thrones (newbies)”, in The A.V. Club‎:

     The Mountain versus the Hound played out entertainingly, with the elder Clegane still outmatching his younger brother pound for pound and blow for blow. Being turned into a walking zombie of sorts didn’t just amplify his strength; it essentially obviated the need to parry blows, as even Sandor sinking his sword deep into his undead brother didn’t seem to slow him down in the slightest.

• play out the string

• outplay