play it by ear

idiom
UK: /ˌpleɪ ɪt baɪ ˈɪər/
US: /ˌpleɪ ɪt baɪ ˈɪr/

  1. To decide how to deal with a situation as it develops, rather than planning in advance.

    1. Let's just play it by ear and see what happens.
    2. We didn't make any reservations we'll just play it by ear when we get to town.

Synonyms

improvise wing it ad-lib
play it by ear verb

  1. To improvise or perform music without written notes.

    1. He can play it by ear, he is very talented.
    2. The band didn't rehearse that song, they decided to play it by ear during the show.

Frequently Asked Questions

The phonetic transcription of "play it by ear" is /ˌpleɪ ɪt baɪ ˈɪər/ in British English and /ˌpleɪ ɪt baɪ ˈɪr/ in American English. Click the 🔊 button to hear both pronunciations.

Synonyms for "play it by ear": improvise, wing it, ad-lib.

Example usage of "play it by ear": "Let's just play it by ear and see what happens.". More examples on the page.