[General] play with vs play on

Status
Not open for further replies.

maoyueh

Member
Joined
May 28, 2011
Member Type
Retired English Teacher
Native Language
Chinese
Home Country
Taiwan
Current Location
Taiwan
In the following sentence, which is the better choice, or are both correct? Thank you so much.

My son spent a lot of time playing (A. with B. on) his mobile phone.
 

Phaedrus

Banned
Joined
Jul 19, 2012
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
English
Home Country
United States
Current Location
United States
To me, each has a different connotation. Playing on one's phone could mean doing things like playing video games on it.
Playing with one's phone has a much less sophisticated connotation. It could mean, e.g., having fun turning it on and off.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top