English

rank|open|therefore|feet|324|lay|along|four|wish

Pronunciation
AHD|l�, IPA|/leɪ/, SAMPA|/leI/
audio|en-us-lay.ogg|Audio (US)
:Homophones: lei, ley
Rhymes: Rhymes:English:-eɪ|-eɪ

Etymology 1
Old English lecgan, from Germanic. A causative form of lie. Cognate with Dutch leggen, German legen, Swedish lägga.

Verb
en-verb|lays|laying|laid

1. transitive To place something down in a position of rest.
2. context|transitive|archaic To cause to subside or abate.
3. transitive To leave something somewhere.
4. transitive To prepare (e.g., the groundwork, the table).
5. transitive To install certain building materials, laying one thing on top of another (e.g. lay brick, lay flooring.)
6. transitive To produce and deposit (an egg).
7. transitive To have sexual intercourse with someone, especially in a casual manner.
8. context|intransitive|non-standard|or|colloquial To lie.

Derived terms
lay away
lay down - to specify - italbrac|to lay down the law
lay out - to specify - italbrac|lay out the guidelines
lay low - hide, avoid being seen
lay about - assault
lay to rest - place in a grave or tomb; "the pharaos were entombed in the pyramids" - synonyms : entomb, inhume, inter, bury.
lay siege

Translations
trans-top|to place something down in a position of rest
Danish: lægge
Dutch: leggen
Finnish: asettaa, panna, laittaa
French: coucher
German: legen
Indonesian: letak|meletakkan, tempat|menempatkan
trans-mid
Italian: posare, porre
Japanese: 置� (��, oku), �� (��)
Lojban: punji
Old English: lecgan
Slovene: položiti
Spanish: acostar
Swedish: lägga
trans-bottom

trans-top|to prepare
Italian: disporre
Slovene: položiti
trans-mid
Spanish: poner
trans-bottom

trans-top|to install certain building materials
Italian: posare
Slovene: položiti
trans-mid
Spanish: poner
trans-bottom

trans-top|to give birth to eggs
Finnish: munia
French: pondre
Italian: deporre
trans-mid
Lojban: se jbena, seljbe
Spanish: poner
trans-bottom

Etymology 2
From the verb.

Noun
en-noun

1. Arrangement or relationship; layout; eg, the lay of the land.
2. The direction a rope is twisted.

#:Worm and parcel with the lay; turn and serve the other way.

1. A casual sexual partner.
2. A ballad or sung poem.

Translations
arrangement or relationship
Dutch: ligging f

Etymology 3
From Old French lai (French laïque).

Adjective
en-adj|-

1. Non-professional, not being a member of an organized institution (e.g. scientific lay person).
2. Not belonging to the clergy.

Related terms
laity
layman

Translations
trans-top|non-professional
Dutch: leken-
Finnish: maallikko
trans-mid
German: Laien-
Italian: profano m, profana f
trans-bottom

trans-top|non-clergy
Dutch: leken-, wereldlijk
Finnish: maallikko
trans-mid
German: Laien-
Italian: laico m,laica f
Old English: t-|ang|læwed|xs=Old English
trans-bottom

Translations to be checked
checktrans

ttbc|Hungarian: laikus

Verb
lay

Past tense of to lie#Etymology 1|lie when meaning "to put oneself horizontally".

1. defn|English

Derived terms
layabout - a lazy person

Derived terms
layoff

Category:English irregular verbs
Category:English words with multiple etymologies

Malagasy

Etymology
Common Malayo-Polynesian, compare Indonesian layar

Noun
lay

1. sail

Category:Malagasy language

et:lay
el:lay
fr:lay
gl:lay
io:lay
it:lay
hu:lay
ja:lay
pl:lay
pt:lay
ru:lay
fi:lay
te:lay
vi:lay
uk:lay
zh:lay

• 2007-12-27 00:03 - Rsvk - /* Verb */ Added missing comma

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