Idiom
play well with others
Meaning
To habitually demonstrate interpersonal skills by engaging agreeably in social or work activities.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Examples
“He is a great teammate because he plays well with others.”
“You need to play well with others if you want to join our club.”
“The manager hired her because she has the technical skills and plays well with others in a group setting.”
“Even though the new designer is very talented, he might lose his job if he does not learn how to play well with others during staff meetings.”
“In a modern corporate environment, success often depends less on individual brilliance and more on one's ability to play well with others during high-pressure projects.”
Examples
simple
“He is a great teammate because he plays well with others.”
“You need to play well with others if you want to join our club.”
contextual
“The manager hired her because she has the technical skills and plays well with others in a group setting.”
“Even though the new designer is very talented, he might lose his job if he does not learn how to play well with others during staff meetings.”
complex
“In a modern corporate environment, success often depends less on individual brilliance and more on one's ability to play well with others during high-pressure projects.”
Origin
Attested as a set phrase from the mid-20th century, the expression originates in the standardised assessments of primary education report cards. It preserves the specific language used by instructors to evaluate a child's social integration and cooperative behaviour during play. The phrase transitioned from the classroom to the professional sphere, where it now serves as a metric for adult conduct.
Key words
Related idioms
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