lay

Definitions

1. 1past tense

   of Lie, to recline.

2. 2adjective

   Of or pertaining to the laity, as distinct from the clergy; as, a lay person; a lay preacher; a lay brother.

3. 3adjective

   Not educated or cultivated; ignorant.

4. 4adjective

   Not belonging to, or emanating from, a particular profession; unprofessional; as, a lay opinion regarding the nature of a disease.

5. 5noun

   The laity; the common people.

6. 6noun

   A meadow. See Lea.

7. 7noun

   Faith; creed; religious profession.

8. 8noun

   A law.

9. 9noun

   An obligation; a vow.

10. 10adjective

    A song; a simple lyrical poem; a ballad.

11. 11adjective

    A melody; any musical utterance.

12. 12transitive verb

    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.

13. 13transitive verb

    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.

14. 14transitive verb

    To prepare; to make ready; to contrive; to provide; as, to lay a snare, an ambush, or a plan.

15. 15transitive verb

    To spread on a surface; as, to lay plaster or paint.

16. 16transitive verb

    To cause to be still; to calm; to allay; to suppress; to exorcise, as an evil spirit.

17. 17transitive verb

    To cause to lie dead or dying.

18. 18transitive verb

    To deposit, as a wager; to stake; to risk.

19. 19transitive verb

    To bring forth and deposit; as, to lay eggs.

20. 20transitive verb

    To apply; to put.

21. 21transitive verb

    To impose, as a burden, suffering, or punishment; to assess, as a tax; as, to lay a tax on land.

22. 22transitive verb

    To impute; to charge; to allege.

23. 23transitive verb

    To impose, as a command or a duty; as, to lay commands on one.

24. 24transitive verb

    To present or offer; as, to lay an indictment in a particular county; to lay a scheme before one.

25. 25transitive verb

    To state; to allege; as, to lay the venue.

26. 26transitive verb

    To point; to aim; as, to lay a gun.

27. 27transitive verb

    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.

28. 28transitive verb

    To place and arrange (pages) for a form upon the imposing stone.

29. 29transitive verb

    To place (new type) properly in the cases.

30. 30intransitive verb

    To produce and deposit eggs.

31. 31intransitive verb

    To take a position; to come or go; as, to lay forward; to lay aloft.

32. 32intransitive verb

    To lay a wager; to bet.

33. 33noun

    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.

34. 34transitive verb

    A wager.

35. 35transitive verb

    A job, price, or profit.

36. 36transitive verb

    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.

37. 37transitive verb

    A measure of yarn; a lea. See 1st Lea (a).

38. 38transitive verb

    The lathe of a loom. See Lathe, 3.

39. 39transitive verb

    A plan; a scheme.

40. 40past tense

    of Lie

41. 41noun

    a narrative poem of popular origin

    Synonyms

    ballad
42. 42noun

    a narrative song with a recurrent refrain

    Synonyms

    ballad
43. 43verb

    put into a certain place or abstract location

    "Put your things here"

    "Set the tray down"

    Synonyms

    placeposepositionputset
44. 44verb

    put in a horizontal position

    "lay the books on the table"

    "lay the patient carefully onto the bed"

    Synonyms

    repose
45. 45verb

    lay eggs

    "This hen doesn't lay"

46. 46verb

    prepare or position for action or operation

    "lay a fire"

    "lay the foundation for a new health care plan"

47. 47verb

    impose as a duty, burden, or punishment

    "lay a responsibility on someone"

48. 48adjective

    not of or from a profession

    "a lay opinion as to the cause of the disease"

49. 49adjective

    characteristic of those who are not members of the clergy

    "set his collar in laic rather than clerical position"

    "the lay ministry"

    Synonyms

    laicsecular