> as lemmas

c1390 in F. J. Furnivall Minor Poems Vernon MS (1901) 474 Sore I seo þe buye Al my loue-plawe.

1651 J. Ellistone tr. J. Böhme Signatura Rerum xiii. 158 All things were in equal weight of all the properties in a Love-play, as it is even so now in Paradise.

a1672 P. Sterry Rise Kingdom of God (1683) 291 Thus Death becometh a Love-play between Christ, and his Spouse.

1821 Ld. Byron Marino Faliero (2nd issue) Pref. p. xx A tragedy of the highest order, and not a puling love-play.

1849 U.S. Mag. & Democratic Rev. Dec. 523 It was during the interlude of this dramatic love-play, that the editor of the Omni-Versus..returned to New-York.

1879 Times 24 June 10/3 The love play of Perdican and Camille, which ends so sadly and so suddenly in poor little Rosette's heartbroken cry.

1944 T. Rattigan While Sun Shines ii. 226 You're both very much mistaken if either of you imagines that you're going to have twopence-worth of verbal loveplay with my fiancée on my telephone.

1963 A. Heron Towards Quaker View of Sex 55 Adult heterosexuality presents fewer problems where early love play is tolerated than where it is suppressed.

1978 D. E. Stanford Achievement Robert Bridges iii. 169 Christian Captives is primarily a love play.

1997 Resource Packet for Neo-Paganism & Witchcraft 22 Eroticism in its religious reference venerates love play and the sexual act as divine.