The purpose of this study is to investigate word association of play by parents with young children. Word associations were conducted to find out the subjective and experiential meaning associated with play. The subjects in this study include 150 parents raising young children in South Korea. The results of this study are as follows. First, the meaning of play included universal and extended meaning from semantic relationships such as a synonym, an antonym, and a contronym. Second, the meaning of play included differences in meaning according to play subjects and context. Third, the meaning of play included differences in meaning according to personal characteristics of raising infants and children in modern society. The present study provides a new perspective and multi-faceted understanding of play. In addition, based on the versatility of play and the possibility of abundant interpretation, it is suggested that academia, educational institutions, parents identify and share each other s understanding of the same.