musical chairs
noun
plural in form but singular in construction
: a game in which players march to music around a row of chairs numbering one less than the players and scramble for seats when the music stops
also
: a situation or series of events suggesting the game of musical chairs (as in rapid change or confusing activity)
Examples of musical chairs in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But, who would want this ridiculous game of musical chairs?
—
Los Angeles Times, 18 May 2024
While the series has played musical chairs over the years with distributors, moving from FilmDistrict to Focus Features to Universal to Sony, Jason Blum’s Blumhouse Productions has been behind every installment, co-producing with various other production banners.
—J. Kim Murphy, Variety, 16 May 2024
Think of panic as musical chairs, except the more frantically everyone tries to sit the quicker the chairs disappear.
—Andrew Lipstein, Harper's Magazine, 26 Apr. 2024
The selection of Mäkelä arrives amid a chaotic game of musical chairs across major American orchestras.
—Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post, 2 Apr. 2024
The fashion world’s been spinning recently, as designers for some of the world’s major luxury labels engage in an extended game of musical chairs.
—Merle Ginsberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Mar. 2024
But if Darnold is left standing in the game of quarterback musical chairs, there are worse jobs than being Purdy’s backup.
—Jerry McDonald, The Mercury News, 12 Mar. 2024
Soon enough, everyone was playing a game of musical chairs, dropping by friends' tables to chat about the NYFW fall 2024 debuts and the long month ahead.
—Eliseé Browchuk, Vogue, 13 Feb. 2024
After a game of NFL musical chairs that saw the Rams and the Chargers land in Los Angeles, $750 million in public funding toward the $1.9 billion construction of Allegiant Stadium enticed the Raiders to leave Oakland for the 2020 season.
—Brett Knight, Forbes, 10 Feb. 2024
Los Angeles Times, 18 May 2024
While the series has played musical chairs over the years with distributors, moving from FilmDistrict to Focus Features to Universal to Sony, Jason Blum’s Blumhouse Productions has been behind every installment, co-producing with various other production banners.
—J. Kim Murphy, Variety, 16 May 2024
Think of panic as musical chairs, except the more frantically everyone tries to sit the quicker the chairs disappear.
—Andrew Lipstein, Harper's Magazine, 26 Apr. 2024
The selection of Mäkelä arrives amid a chaotic game of musical chairs across major American orchestras.
—Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post, 2 Apr. 2024
The fashion world’s been spinning recently, as designers for some of the world’s major luxury labels engage in an extended game of musical chairs.
—Merle Ginsberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Mar. 2024
But if Darnold is left standing in the game of quarterback musical chairs, there are worse jobs than being Purdy’s backup.
—Jerry McDonald, The Mercury News, 12 Mar. 2024
Soon enough, everyone was playing a game of musical chairs, dropping by friends' tables to chat about the NYFW fall 2024 debuts and the long month ahead.
—Eliseé Browchuk, Vogue, 13 Feb. 2024
After a game of NFL musical chairs that saw the Rams and the Chargers land in Los Angeles, $750 million in public funding toward the $1.9 billion construction of Allegiant Stadium enticed the Raiders to leave Oakland for the 2020 season.
—Brett Knight, Forbes, 10 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'musical chairs.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Musical chairs.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/musical%20chairs. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
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