# play booty

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/play-booty
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To hustle (play deliberately badly at a game or sport in an attempt to encourage players to challenge one).

## Examples

- He is playing booty to trick you into betting more money.
- The hustler played booty during the first few rounds to make his opponent feel overconfident.
- By deliberately playing booty, the shark lured the unsuspecting amateur into a high-stakes game he could never win.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.