playbook

IPA/ˈpleɪbʊk/
KK[plˈebʊk]IPA/ˈpleɪbʊk/

playbook — noun

  • playbooksingular
  • playbooksplural

1. A notebook or booklet that shows the planned moves a sports team has practised a

1.名詞B2
釋義

A notebook or booklet that shows the planned moves a sports team has practised and may use in a match, used most often in American football.

例句

The rookie quarterback studied the playbook on the flight to Dallas.

study the playbook before a game

Coach Rivera added two red-zone plays to the playbook this week.

add plays to the playbook

同義詞
  • game plan

    broader and less tied to a physical booklet; can mean the overall strategy

  • play sheet

    narrower; often a shorter in-game list rather than the full set of plays

  • book of plays

    descriptive phrase for the same kind of collection

文法句型

playbook + for + team/sport

add to + the playbook

learn/study + the playbook

用法筆記

Usually refers to team sports and often appears with words like offensive, defensive, or team. In this literal sense it can name a real printed or digital collection of plays, unlike sense 2, which is often figurative.

常見錯誤

❌That trick pass was our best playbook.
✅That trick pass was our best play.
💡A playbook is the whole collection of prepared moves, not one move by itself.

2. A familiar set of methods, rules, or responses that people in a field keep using

2.名詞C1
釋義

A familiar set of methods, rules, or responses that people in a field keep using because they think it works.

例句

The startup copied Silicon Valley's hiring playbook without questioning local needs.

hiring playbook = repeatable set of methods

Tanvi threw out the usual crisis playbook and called customers herself.

throw out the playbook = reject the standard approach

同義詞
  • strategy

    focuses on the overall plan; a playbook often includes the standard steps for carrying it out

  • template

    emphasises a model to copy, often more fixed and less strategic

  • manual

    focuses on instructions; less often used for political or business tactics

反義詞
  • improvisation

    acting in the moment instead of following an established set of moves

文法句型

playbook + for + noun/activity

follow + a/the playbook

throw out + the playbook

用法筆記

Common in business, politics, management, and public discussion. It often describes a repeatable pattern rather than a physical book. Distinguish from sense 1, which stays tied to sports plays that a team has practised.

常見錯誤

❌The washing machine playbook is in the kitchen drawer.
✅The washing machine manual is in the kitchen drawer.
💡For instructions on using a product, English usually says 'manual'; 'playbook' suggests a reusable strategy or response pattern.

3. A printed book that contains the written text of one play or several stage plays

3.名詞C1
釋義

A printed book that contains the written text of one play or several stage plays.

例句

Our drama teacher ordered a playbook of Greek tragedies for the class.

playbook of + plays or authors

Wei found a dusty playbook from the 1920s in the theatre archive.

同義詞
  • script collection

    clear modern phrase for a book that gathers scripts together

  • anthology

    broader; can collect many kinds of writing, not only plays

  • drama volume

    formal term for a printed book of plays

文法句型

playbook + of + plays

a + playwright-name + playbook

用法筆記

This literary sense is much less common today than script, screenplay, or script collection. It normally refers to stage plays, not film dialogue.

常見錯誤

❌I bought the playbook of the new superhero film.
✅I bought the screenplay of the new superhero film.
💡A playbook in this sense contains stage plays, not film scripts.