What does “lay” mean?
- 1
verbto put someone or something down carefully in a flat position
She laid the baby on the bed.
- 2
verbto produce eggs (of a bird or insect)
The hen lays an egg every day.
Lay at a glance
- Part of speech
- verb
- CEFR level
- B1 (intermediate)
- Pronunciation
- /leɪ/ · LAY
- Forms
- laid, laying
How to use “lay” correctly
“Lay” needs an object (“lay the book down”); “lie” does not (“lie on the bed”). Confusingly, “lay” is also the past tense of “lie”.
Common phrases with “lay”
- lay the table
- lay eggs
- lay off workers
- lay down
“lay” is on these word lists
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