play

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 戯 has 15 strokes, the on-reading ぎ, and the kun-reading たわむれる. 戯れる (たわむれる) means to frolic or play with something.
• Basic usage: 戯れる describes playing with things such as waves or words; 戯曲 (ぎきょく) names a play written for theatrical performance.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Playing with something and a theatrical play
  • 波と戯れている describes playing in the waves at the beach. 言葉と戯れるように compares the poet's writing to freely playing with words.
  • 登場人物が二人だけ means that the play has only two characters. 短い戯曲を自分たちで書いた means that drama club students wrote a short play themselves.