A playoff means a game or series of games played to determine a champion after the regular season ends. In professional sports like basketball, football, and baseball, teams compete all season to earn a spot in the playoffs, where only the best teams continue playing. The stakes get higher with each playoff game: lose and you're eliminated, but win and you move closer to the championship.

Playoff games are usually more intense than regular season games because one loss can end a team's entire year. Players and fans feel the pressure mounting as teams advance through playoff rounds. A basketball team might win their conference playoff to reach the finals, or a football team might battle through several playoff games to reach the Super Bowl.

The word can also describe any competition that settles a tie or determines a winner. If two students tie for the highest score in a spelling bee, they might have a playoff round with new words. The key idea is that playoffs happen when the regular competition isn't enough to determine who's best, so you need extra games or rounds where winners keep advancing and losers are eliminated.