Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Lay

Lay

,
imp.
of
Lie
, to recline.

Lay

,
Adj.
[F.
lai
, L.
laicus
, Gr. [GREEK] of or from the people, lay, from [GREEK], [GREEK], people. Cf.
Laic
.]
1.
Of or pertaining to the laity, as distinct from the clergy;
as, a
lay
person; a
lay
preacher; a
lay
brother.
2.
Not educated or cultivated; ignorant.
[Obs.]
3.
Not belonging to, or emanating from, a particular profession; unprofessional;
as, a
lay
opinion regarding the nature of a disease
.
Lay baptism
(Eccl.)
,
baptism administered by a lay person.
F. G. Lee.
–
Lay brother
(R. C. Ch.)
,
one received into a convent of monks under the three vows, but not in holy orders.
–
Lay clerk
(Eccl.)
,
a layman who leads the responses of the congregation, etc., in the church service.
Hook.
–
Lay days
(Com.)
,
time allowed in a charter party for taking in and discharging cargo.
McElrath.
–
Lay elder
.
See 2d
Elder
, 3, note.

Lay

,
Noun.
The laity; the common people.
[Obs.]
The learned have no more privilege than the
lay
.
B. Jonson.

Lay

,
Noun.
A meadow. See
Lea
.
[Obs.]
Dryden.

Lay

,
Noun.
[OF.
lei
faith, law, F.
loi
law. See
Legal
.]
1.
Faith; creed; religious profession.
[Obs.]
Of the sect to which that he was born
He kept his
lay
, to which that he was sworn.
Chaucer.
2.
A law.
[Obs.]
“Many goodly lays.”
Spenser.
3.
An obligation; a vow.
[Obs.]
They bound themselves by a sacred
lay
and oath.
Holland.

Lay

,
Adj.
[OF.
lai
,
lais
, prob. of Celtic origin; cf. Ir.
laoi
,
laoidh
, song, poem, OIr.
laoidh
poem, verse; but cf. also AS.
lāc
play, sport, G.
leich
a sort of poem (cf.
Lake
to sport). [GREEK].]
1.
A song; a simple lyrical poem; a ballad.
Spenser. Sir W. Scott.
2.
A melody; any musical utterance.
The throstle cock made eke his
lay
.
Chaucer.

Lay

(lā)
,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Laid
(lād)
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Laying
.]
[OE.
leggen
, AS.
lecgan
, causative, fr.
licgan
to lie; akin to D.
leggen
, G.
legen
, Icel.
leggja
, Goth.
lagjan
. See
Lie
to be prostrate.]
1.
To cause to lie down, to be prostrate, or to lie against something; to put or set down; to deposit;
as, to
lay
a book on the table; to
lay
a body in the grave; a shower
lays
the dust.
A stone was brought, and
laid
upon the mouth of the den.
Dan. vi. 17.
Soft on the flowery herb I found me
laid
.
Milton.
2.
To place in position; to establish firmly; to arrange with regularity; to dispose in ranks or tiers;
as, to
lay
a corner stone; to
lay
bricks in a wall; to
lay
the covers on a table.
3.
To prepare; to make ready; to contrive; to provide;
as, to
lay
a snare, an ambush, or a plan
.
4.
To spread on a surface;
as, to
lay
plaster or paint
.
5.
To cause to be still; to calm; to allay; to suppress; to exorcise, as an evil spirit.
After a tempest when the winds are
laid
.
Waller.
6.
To cause to lie dead or dying.
Brave Cæneus
laid
Ortygius on the plain,
The victor Cæneus was by Turnus slain.
Dryden.
7.
To deposit, as a wager; to stake; to risk.
I dare
lay
mine honor
He will remain so.
Shakespeare
8.
To bring forth and deposit;
as, to
lay
eggs
.
9.
To apply; to put.
She
layeth
her hands to the spindle.
Prov. xxxi. 19.
10.
To impose, as a burden, suffering, or punishment; to assess, as a tax;
as, to
lay
a tax on land
.
The Lord hath
laid
on him the iniquity of us all.
Is. liii. 6.
11.
To impute; to charge; to allege.
God
layeth
not folly to them.
Job xxiv. 12.
Lay
the fault on us.
Shakespeare
12.
To impose, as a command or a duty;
as, to
lay
commands on one
.
13.
To present or offer;
as, to
lay
an indictment in a particular county; to
lay
a scheme before one.
14.
(Law)
To state; to allege;
as, to
lay
the venue
.
Bouvier.
15.
(Mil.)
To point; to aim;
as, to
lay
a gun
.
16.
(Rope Making)
To put the strands of (a rope, a cable, etc.) in their proper places and twist or unite them;
as, to
lay
a cable or rope
.
17.
(Print.)
(a)
To place and arrange (pages) for a form upon the imposing stone.
(b)
To place (new type) properly in the cases.
To lay asleep
,
to put sleep; to make unobservant or careless.
Bacon.
–
To lay bare
,
to make bare; to strip.

–
To lay before
,
to present to; to submit for consideration;
as, the papers are
laid before
Congress
.
–
To lay by
.
(a)
To save.
(b)
To discard.
–
To lay by the heels
,
to put in the stocks.
Shak.
–
To lay down
.
(a)
To stake as a wager.
(b)
To yield; to relinquish; to surrender;
as, to
lay down
one’s life; to
lay down
one's arms
.
(c)
To assert or advance, as a proposition or principle.
–
To lay forth
.
(a)
To extend at length; (reflexively) to exert one's self; to expatiate.
[Obs.]
(b)
To lay out (as a corpse).
[Obs.]
Shak.
–
To lay hands on
,
to seize.
–
To lay hands on one's self
, or
To lay violent hands on one's self
,
to injure one's self; specif., to commit suicide.
–
To lay heads together
,
to consult.
–
To lay hold of
, or
To lay hold on
,
to seize; to catch.
–
To lay in
,
to store; to provide.
–
To lay it on
,
to apply without stint.
Shak.
–
To lay it on thick
,
to flatter excessively.
–
To lay on
,
to apply with force; to inflict;
as,
to lay on
blows
.
–
To lay on load
,
to lay on blows; to strike violently.
[Obs. or Archaic]
–
To lay one's self out
,
to strive earnestly.
No selfish man will be concerned
to lay out himself
for the good of his country.
Smalridge.
–
To lay one's self open to
,
to expose one's self to, as to an accusation.
–
To lay open
,
to open; to uncover; to expose; to reveal.
–
To lay over
,
to spread over; to cover.
–
To lay out
.
(a)
To expend.
Macaulay.
(b)
To display; to discover.
(c)
To plan in detail; to arrange; as, to lay out a garden.
(d)
To prepare for burial;
as,
to lay out
a corpse
.
(e)
To exert;
as,
to lay out
all one's strength
.
–
To lay siege to
.
(a)
To besiege; to encompass with an army.
(b)
To beset pertinaciously.
–
To lay the course
(Naut.)
,
to sail toward the port intended without jibing.
–
To lay the land
(Naut.)
,
to cause it to disappear below the horizon, by sailing away from it.
–
To lay to
(a)
To charge upon; to impute.
(b)
To apply with vigor.
(c)
To attack or harass.
[Obs.]
Knolles.
(d)
(Naut.)
To check the motion of (a vessel) and cause it to be stationary.
–
To lay to heart
,
to feel deeply; to consider earnestly.
–
To lay under
,
to subject to;
as,
to lay under
obligation or restraint
.
–
To lay unto
.
(a)
Same as
To lay to
(above).
(b)
To put before.
Hos. xi. 4.
–
To lay up
.
(a)
To store; to reposit for future use.
(b)
To confine; to disable.
(c)
To dismantle, and retire from active service, as a ship.
–
To lay wait for
,
to lie in ambush for.
–
To lay waste
,
to destroy; to make desolate;
as,
to lay waste
the land
.
Syn. – See
Put
,
Verb.
T.
, and the Note under 4th
Lie
.

Lay

,
Verb.
I.
1.
To produce and deposit eggs.
2.
(Naut.)
To take a position; to come or go;
as, to
lay
forward; to
lay
aloft.
3.
To lay a wager; to bet.
To lay about
, or
To lay about one
,
to strike vigorously in all directions.
J. H. Newman.
–
To lay at
,
to strike or strike at.
Spenser.
–
To lay for
,
to prepare to capture or assault; to lay wait for.
[Colloq.]
Bp Hall.
–
To lay in for
,
to make overtures for; to engage or secure the possession of.
[Obs.]
“I have laid in for these.”
Dryden.
–
To lay on
,
to strike; to beat; to attack.
Shak.
–
To lay out
,
to purpose; to plan;
as, he
lays out
to make a journey
.

Lay

,
Noun.
1.
That which lies or is laid or is conceived of as having been laid or placed in its position; a row; a stratum; a layer;
as, a
lay
of stone or wood
.
Addison.
A viol should have a
lay
of wire strings below.
Bacon.
☞ The lay of a rope is right-handed or left-handed according to the hemp or strands are laid up. See
Lay
,
Verb.
T.
, 16. The lay of land is its topographical situation, esp. its slope and its surface features.
2.
A wager.
“My fortunes against any lay worth naming.”
3.
(a)
A job, price, or profit.
[Prov. Eng.]
Wright.
(b)
A share of the proceeds or profits of an enterprise;
as, when a man ships for a whaling voyage, he agrees for a certain
lay
.
[U. S.]
4.
(Textile Manuf.)
(a)
A measure of yarn; a lea. See 1st
Lea
(a)
.
(b)
The lathe of a loom. See
Lathe
, 3.
5.
A plan; a scheme.
[Slang]
Dickens.
Lay figure
.
(a)
A jointed model of the human body that may be put in any attitude; – used for showing the disposition of drapery, etc.
(b)
A mere puppet; one who serves the will of others without independent volition.
–
Lay race
,
that part of a lay on which the shuttle travels in weaving; – called also
shuttle race
.
–
the lay of the land
,
the general situation or state of affairs.
–
to get the lay of the land
,
to learn the general situation or state of affairs, especially in preparation for action.

Webster 1828 Edition

Lay

LAY

, pret. of lie. The estate lay in the county of Hartford.
When Ahab heard these words, he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his head, and fasted and lay in sackcloth.
1Kings 21.

LAY

,
Verb.
T.
pret. and pp. laid. [L. loco, whence locus, Eng. ley or lea. The primary sense is to send or throw; hence this word is the L. lego, legare, differently applied; Gr. to lie down.]
1.
Literally, to throw down; hence, to put or place; applied to things broad or long, and in this respect differing from set. We lay a book on the table, when we place it on its side, but we set it on the end. We lay the foundation of a house, but we set a building on its foundation.
He laid his robe from him. Jonah 3.
Soft on the flowery herb I found me laid.
A stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den.
Dan. 6.
2.
To beat down; to prostrate. Violent winds with rain lay corn and grass.
3.
To settle; to fix and keep from rising. A shower lays the dust.
4.
To place in order; to dispose with regularity in building; as, to lay bricks or stones in constructing walls.
5.
To spread on a surface; as, to lay plaster or paint.
6.
To spread or set; as, to lay snares.
7.
To calm; to appease; to still; to allay.
After a tempest, when the winds are laid.
8.
To quiet; to still; to restrain from walking; as, to lay the devil.
9.
To spread and set in order; to prepare; as, to lay a table for dinner.
10.
To place in the earth for growth.
The chief time of laying gilliflowers, is in July.
11.
To place at hazard; to wage; to stake; as, to lay a crown or an eagle; to lay a wager.
12.
To bring forth; to exclude; as, to lay eggs.
13.
To add; to join.
Woe to them that join house to house, that lay field to field. Is. 5.
14.
To put; to apply.
She layeth her hand to the spindle. Prov. 31.
15.
To asses; to charge; to impose; as, to lay a tax on land; to lay a duty on salt.
16.
To charge; to impute; as, to lay blame on one; to lay want of prudence to one's charge.
17.
To impose, as evil, burden, or punishment.
The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. Is. 53.
18.
To enjoin as a duty; as, to lay commands on one.
19.
To exhibit; to present or offer; as, to lay an indictment in a particular county.
20.
To prostrate; to slay.
The leaders first he laid along.
21.
To depress and lose sight of, by sailing or departing from; as, to lay the land; a seaman's phrase.
22.
To station; to set; as, to lay an ambush.
23.
To contrive; to scheme; to plan.
To lay a cable, to twist or unite the strands.
To lay apart, to put away; to reject.
Lay apart all filthiness. James 1.
1.
To lay aside, to put off or away; not to retain.
Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin that doth so easily beset us. Heb. 41.
2.
To discontinue; as, to lay aside the use of any thing.
To lay away, to reposit in store; to put aside for preservation.
To lay before, to exhibit; to show; to present to view. The papers are laid before Congress.
1.
To lay by, to reserve for future use.
Let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him. 1Cor. 16.
2.
To put away; to dismiss.
Let brave spirits not be laid by, as persons unnecessary for the time.
3.
To put off.
And she arose and went away, and laid by her veil. Gen. 38.
1.
To lay down, to deposit, as a pledge, equivalent or satisfaction; to resign.
I lay down my life for the sheep. John 10.
2.
To give up; to resign; to quit or relinquish; as, to lay down an office or commission.
3.
To quit; to surrender the use of; as, to lay down one's arms.
4.
To offer or advance; as, to lay down a proposition or principle.
To lay one's self down, to commit to repose.
I will both lay me down in peace and sleep - Ps. 4.
To lay hold of, to seize; to catch. To lay hold on, is used in a like sense.
To lay in, to store; to treasure; to provide previously.
To lay on, to apply with force; to inflict; as, to lay on blows.
To lay open, to open; to make bare; to uncover; also, to show; to expose; to reveal; as, to lay open the designs of an enemy.
To lay over, to spread over; to incrust; to cover the surface; as, to lay over with gold or silver.
1.
To lay out, to expend; as, to lay out money, or sums of money.
2.
To display; to discover.
He takes occasion to lay out bigotry and false confidence in all its colors. Obs.
3.
To plan; to dispose in order the several parts; as, to lay out a garden.
4.
To dress in grave clothes and place in a decent posture; as, to lay out a corpse. Shakespeare uses to lay, forth.
5.
To exert; as, to lay out all one's strength. So with the reciprocal pronoun, to lay one's self out, is to exert strength.
1.
To lay to, to charge upon; to impute.
2.
To apply with vigor.
3.
To attack or harass. Obs.
4.
To check the motion of a ship, and cause her to be stationary.
To lay together, to collect; to bring to one place; also, to bring into one view.
To lay to heart, to permit to affect greatly.
To lay under, to subject to; as, to lay one under restraint or obligation.
1.
To lay up, to store; to treasure; to reposit for future use.
Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven. Matt. 6.
2.
To confine to the bed or chamber. He is laid up with the gout.
To lay siege, to besiege; to encompass with an army.
To lay wait, to station for private attack; to lay in ambush for.
To lay the course, in sailing, is to sail towards the port intended, without gibing.
To lay waste, to destroy; to desolate; to deprive of inhabitants, improvements and productions.
To lay the land, in seamen's language, is to cause the land apparently to sink or appear lower, by sailing from it; the distance diminishing the elevation.

LAY

,
Verb.
I.
1.
To bring or produce eggs.
Hens will greedily eat the herb that will make them lay the better.
2.
To contrive; to form a scheme. [Unusual.]
To lay about, to strike or throw the arms on all sides; to act with vigor.
To lay at, to strike or to endeavor to strike.
The sword of him that layeth at him cannot hold. Job. 41.
1.
To lay out, to purpose; to intend. he lays out to make a journey.
2.
To take measures.
I made strict inquiry wherever I came, and laid out for intelligence of all places.
To lay upon, to importune. Obs.

LAY

, n.
1.
That which lies or is laid; a row; a stratum; a layer; one rank in a series reckoned upward; as a lay of wood.
A viol should have a lay of wire-strings below.
2.
A bet; a wager. [Little used.]
3.
Station; rank. [Not used.]

LAY

,
Noun.
[L. locus. See Lay, the verb. The words which signify place, are from verbs which express setting or laying. It is written also ley, and lea, but less properly.]
A meadow; a plain or plat of grass land.
A tuft of daisies on a flowery lay.
The lowing herd wind slowly o'er the lea.

LAY

,
Noun.
[Gr. to sound. L. laudo, plaudo.]
A song; as a loud or soft lay; immortal lays.
[It is used chiefly in poetry.]

LAY

,
Adj.
[L. laicus, Gr. from people.]
Pertaining to the laity or people, as distinct from the clergy; not clerical; as a lay person; a lay preacher; a lay brother.

Definition 2024

Lay

Lay

See also: lay, láy, lấy, and laþ

English

Proper noun

Lay

  1. A river in western France.
  2. A surname​.

lay

lay

See also: Lay, láy, lấy, and laþ

English

Verb

lay ‎(third-person singular simple present lays, present participle laying, simple past and past participle laid)

  1. (transitive) To place down in a position of rest, or in a horizontal position.
    to lay a book on the table;   to lay a body in the grave
    A shower of rain lays the dust.
    • Bible, Daniel vi. 17
      A stone was brought, and laid upon the mouth of the den.
    • 1735, author unknown, The New-England Primer, as reported by Fred R. Shapiro in The Yale Book of Quotations (2006), Yale University Press, pages 549–550:
      Now I lay me down to sleep, / I pray the Lord my Soul to keep. / If I should die before I ’wake, / I pray the Lord my Soul to take.
    • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 1, in The Celebrity:
      He used to drop into my chambers once in a while to smoke, and was first-rate company. When I gave a dinner there was generally a cover laid for him.
    • 1977, Agatha Christie, An Autobiography, Part I, chapter4:
      An indulgent playmate, Grannie would lay aside the long scratchy-looking letter she was writing (heavily crossed ‘to save notepaper’) and enter into the delightful pastime of ‘a chicken from Mr Whiteley's’.
    A corresponding intransitive version of this word is lie.
  2. (transitive, archaic) To cause to subside or abate.
    • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, II.viii:
      The cloudes, as things affrayd, before him flye; / But all so soone as his outrageous powre / Is layd, they fiercely then begin to shoure […]
    • 1662, Thomas Salusbury, Galileo's Dialogue Concerning the Two World Systems, Dialogue 2:
      But how upon the winds being laid, doth the ship cease to move?
  3. (transitive) To prepare (a plan, project etc.); to set out, establish (a law, principle).
    • 2006, Clive James, North Face of Soho, Picador 2007, p. 48:
      Even when I lay a long plan, it is never in the expectation that I will live to see it fulfilled.
  4. (transitive) To install certain building materials, laying one thing on top of another.
    lay brick;  lay flooring
  5. (transitive) To produce and deposit an egg.
  6. (transitive) To bet (that something is or is not the case).
    I'll lay that he doesn't turn up on Monday.
  7. (transitive) To deposit (a stake) as a wager; to stake; to risk.
  8. (transitive, slang) To have sex with.
    • 1944, Raymond Chandler, The Lady in the Lake, Penguin 2011, p. 11:
      ‘It's because he's a no-good son of a bitch who thinks it is smart to lay his friends' wives and brag about it.’
  9. (nautical) To take a position; to come or go.
    to lay forward;  to lay aloft
  10. (law) To state; to allege.
    to lay the venue
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Bouvier to this entry?)
  11. (military) To point; to aim.
    to lay a gun
  12. (ropemaking) To put the strands of (a rope, a cable, etc.) in their proper places and twist or unite them.
    to lay a cable or rope
  13. (printing) To place and arrange (pages) for a form upon the imposing stone.
  14. (printing) To place (new type) properly in the cases.
  15. To apply; to put.
    • Bible, Proverbs xxxi. 19
      She layeth her hands to the spindle.
  16. To impose (a burden, punishment, command, tax, etc.).
    to lay a tax on land
    • Bible, Isaiah liii. 6
      The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
  17. To impute; to charge; to allege.
  18. To present or offer.
    to lay an indictment in a particular county;   to lay a scheme before one
Usage notes

The verb lay is sometimes used interchangeably with the verb lie in informal spoken settings. This can lead to nonstandard constructions which are sometimes objected to. This usage is common in speech but rarely found in edited writing or in more formal spoken situations.

Derived terms
Translations

References

Noun

lay ‎(countable and uncountable, plural lays)

  1. Arrangement or relationship; layout.
    the lay of the land
  2. A share of the profits in a business.
    • 1851, Herman Melville, Moby Dick, chapter 16
      I was already aware that in the whaling business they paid no wages; but all hands, including the captain, received certain shares of the profits called lays, and that these lays were proportioned to the degree of importance pertaining to the respective duties of the ship’s company.
  3. The direction a rope is twisted.
    Worm and parcel with the lay; turn and serve the other way.
  4. (colloquial) A casual sexual partner.
    • 1996, JoAnn Ross, Southern Comforts, MIRA (1996), ISBN 9780778315254, page 166:
      Over the years she'd tried to tell himself that his uptown girl was just another lay.
    • 2000, R. J. Kaiser, Fruitcake, MIRA (2000), ISBN 1551666251, page 288:
      To find a place like that and be discreet about it, Jones figured he needed help, so he went to see his favorite lay, Juan Carillo's woman, Carmen.
    • 2011, Kelly Meding, Trance, Pocket Books (2011), ISBN 9781451620924, pages 205-206:
      “Because I don't want William to be just another lay. I did the **** thing, T, and it got me into a lot of trouble years ago. […]
    What was I, just another lay you can toss aside as you go on to your next conquest?
  5. (colloquial) An act of sexual intercourse.
    • 1993, David Halberstam, The Fifties, Open Road Integrated Media (2012), ISBN 9781453286074, unnumbered page:
      Listening to this dismissal of his work, [Tennessee] Williams thought to himself of Wilder, “This character has never had a good lay.”
    • 2009, Fern Michaels, The Scoop, Kensington Books (2009), ISBN 9780758227188, pages 212-213:
      […] She didn't become this germ freak until Thomas died. I wonder if she just needs a good lay, you know, an all-nighter?" Toots said thoughtfully.
    • 2011, Pamela Yaye, Promises We Make, Kimani Press (2011), ISBN 9780373861996, unnumbered page:
      “What she needs is a good lay. If she had someone to rock her world on a regular basis, she wouldn't be such a raging bit—”
  6. (slang, archaic) A plan; a scheme.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Charles Dickens to this entry?)
  7. (uncountable) the laying of eggs.
    The hens are off the lay at present.
Synonyms
  • (casual sexual partner): see also Wikisaurus:casual sexual partner.
Derived terms
Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English laie, lawe, from Old English lagu ‎(“sea, flood, water, ocean”), from Proto-Germanic *laguz ‎(“water, sea”), from Proto-Indo-European *lakw- ‎(“water, body of water, lake”). Cognate with Icelandic lögur ‎(“liquid, fluid, lake”), Latin lacus ‎(“lake, hollow, hole”).

Noun

lay ‎(plural lays)

  1. A lake.

Etymology 3

From Old French lai, from Latin laicus, from Ancient Greek λαϊκός ‎(laïkós), λαός ‎(laós).

Adjective

lay ‎(comparative more lay, superlative most lay)

  1. Non-professional; not being a member of an organized institution.
    • 1960, P. G. Wodehouse, Jeeves in the Offing, chapter VII:
      He hasn't caught a mouse since he was a slip of a kitten. Except when eating, he does nothing but sleep. [...] It's a sort of disease. There's a scientific name for it. Trau- something. Traumatic symplegia, that's it. This cat has traumatic symplegia. In other words, putting it in simple language adapted to the lay mind, where other cats are content to get their eight hours, Augustus wants his twenty-four.
  2. Not belonging to the clergy, but associated with them.
    They seemed more lay than clerical.
    a lay preacher; a lay brother
  3. (obsolete) Not educated or cultivated; ignorant.
Related terms
Translations

Etymology 4

See lie

Verb

lay

  1. simple past tense of lie when pertaining to position.
    The baby lay in its crib and slept silently.
  2. (proscribed) To be in a horizontal position; to lie (from confusion with lie).
    • 1969 July, Bob Dylan, “Lay Lady Lay”, Nashville Skyline, Columbia:
      Lay, lady, lay. / Lay across my big brass bed.
    • a. 1970, Paul Simon, Simon & Garfunkel, “The Boxer”, Bridge over Troubled Water, Columbia Records:
      Laying low, seeking out the poorer quarters / Where the ragged people go
    • 1974, John Denver, “Annie’s Song”, Back Home Again, RCA:
      Let me lay down beside you. / Let me always be with you.
Derived terms

Etymology 5

From Middle English lay, from Old French lai ‎(“song, lyric, poem”), from Frankish *laik, *laih ‎(“play, melody, song”), from Proto-Germanic *laikaz, *laikiz ‎(“jump, play, dance, hymn”), from Proto-Indo-European *loig-, *(e)laiǵ- ‎(“to jump, spring, play”). Akin to Old High German leih ‎(“a play, skit, melody, song”), Middle High German leich ‎(“piece of music, epic song played on a harp”), Old English lācan ‎(“to move quickly, fence, sing”). See lake.

Noun

lay ‎(plural lays)

  1. A ballad or sung poem; a short poem or narrative, usually intended to be sung.
Translations
Derived terms

Etymology 6

Noun

lay ‎(plural lays)

  1. (obsolete) A meadow; a lea.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Dryden to this entry?)

Etymology 7

Noun

lay ‎(plural lays)

  1. (obsolete) A law.
    • Spenser
      many goodly lays
  2. (obsolete) An obligation; a vow.
    • Holland
      They bound themselves by a sacred lay and oath.

Etymology 8

lay, calque of Yiddish לייגן ‎(leygn, “to put, lay”).

Verb

lay ‎(third-person singular simple present lays, present participle laying, simple past and past participle laid)

  1. (Judaism, transitive) To don or put on (tefillin (phylacteries)).

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: open · therefore · feet · #324: lay · along · four · wish

Anagrams

Malagasy

Etymology

Common Malayo-Polynesian, compare Indonesian layar

Noun

lay

  1. sail

Etymology

From Middle English layen, leggen, from Old English lecgan ‎(“to lay”), from Proto-Germanic *lagjaną ‎(“to lay”), causative form of Proto-Germanic *ligjaną, *legjaną ‎(“to lie, recline”), from Proto-Indo-European *legʰ- ‎(“to lie, recline”). Cognate with West Frisian lizze ‎(“to lay, to lie”), Dutch leggen ‎(“to lay”), German legen ‎(“to lay”), Norwegian ligge ‎(“to lay”), Swedish lägga ‎(“to lay”), Icelandic leggja ‎(“to lay”), Albanian lag ‎(“troop, band, war encampment”).

Pronunciation

  • enPR: lā, IPA(key): /leɪ̯/
  • Rhymes: -eɪ
  • Homophones: lei, ley

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