A British idiom meaning the current state of affairs — where things stand right now in any given situation. Originally a cricket and sports term describing the score and conditions at any given moment, it migrated into general usage to describe the status of any ongoing situation: a negotiation, a project, a relationship, a political crisis. Very common in British journalism, business meetings, and everyday conversation. If your boss asks for 'the state of play', they want a status update.
Before we make any decisions, can someone give us the state of play on the merger negotiations?
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(UK) The current situation (typically in sports).
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Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
See all Regional & Other slang on Slangora.