verb phrase🎓 English idiom
play it by ear
to improvise and decide as you go
What it means
To deal with a situation as it develops rather than following a fixed plan. It means improvising and making decisions in the moment based on what happens.
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Examples
- We haven't booked anything for the trip; we'll just play it by ear.
- Let's play it by ear and decide where to eat once we arrive.
- Since the weather is uncertain, the organisers will play it by ear.
- I don't have a script for the interview; I prefer to play it by ear.
Where it comes from
From music, where playing "by ear" means performing from memory or by listening rather than reading written notation.
Related idioms
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