grandstand play
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
An action done to impress others
Literally: a play from the grandstand
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
The politician's speech was just a grandstand play to get more votes
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “grandstand play” mean?
An action done to impress others Literally: a play from the grandstand
Is “grandstand play” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.