Ploy

Ploy

Noun · /plɔɪ/ · a cunning plan or manoeuvre intended to gain an advantage

Definition

A ploy is a clever, calculated move — a strategy or trick designed to give the person using it an advantage over someone else. It implies an element of cunning, of thinking several steps ahead, of wanting the other party to react in a way you have already anticipated. A ploy is not violent or illegal — it is a game of wit, of social or strategic intelligence.

Origin

From 18th-century Scottish and Northern English dialect — a variant of employ, meaning an occupation or diversion. Originally it simply meant an activity or pastime. The modern sense of cunning stratagem developed through military usage in the 20th century, when the word gained its tactical edge. Today it is fully standard in British English and carries no trace of its innocent original meaning.