student asking question

Why is the phrase "play around with" used instead of "play with"? What is the difference between those two?

teacher

Native speaker’s answer

Rebecca

"Play around [with x]" is a phrasal verb of play. It's used informally to mean to behave in a casual, foolish, or irresponsible way. In this case, both "play with fire" and "play around with fire" can be used, and you will find this is the case in other contexts as well. Ex: Don't play around with a person's feelings. Ex: I am very worried about my son. All he does is play around all day and never study.

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