Pleyere

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An archaic term for a person who takes part in a game, sport, or pastime, or who performs music or a dramatic piece
2. An older spelling meaning someone who plays a game, a musical instrument, or acts out a role in a performance
3. A medieval word for a participant in amusements, music, or stage entertainment, one who engages in play or performs

Etymology: Middle English "pleyere" was the ancestor of modern "player," and its earliest sense was not sporting at all. Its root is the Old English verb "plegan," meaning to play, to exercise, or to engage in some activity, which also gave rise to "play" itself. For centuries a "pleyere" was simply someone who performed or took part in a pastime, whether that meant a musician, an actor, or a gamester. Over time the word narrowed toward the stage and the sports field, and the musical sense shifted from the performer to the instrument, as "player piano" shows. The Middle English spelling was still in use when the word's meanings were being sorted out, so readers of Chaucer's period would have met it in a range of senses, from the minstrel at a feast to the actor on a mystery-play cart. The form "pleyere" with its "-ere" ending reflects the agent suffix that English later standardized as "-er," so the spelling change is the only real difference between the medieval and modern words.