n. 25B6; verb
Curtis laid the newspaper on the table : PUT (DOWN), place, set (down), deposit, rest, situate, locate, position, stow, shove; informal stick, dump, park, plonk; Brit. informal bung.
the act laid the foundation for the new system : SET IN PLACE, set out/up, establish.
I'll lay money that Michelle will be there : BET, wager, gamble, stake, risk, venture; give odds, speculate; informal punt.
they are going to lay charges : BRING (FORWARD), press, prefer, lodge, register, place, file.
he laid the blame at the Prime Minister's door : ASSIGN, attribute, ascribe, allot, attach; hold someone responsible/accountable, find guilty, pin the blame on.
we laid plans for the next voyage : DEVISE, arrange, make (ready), prepare, work out, hatch, design, plan, scheme, plot, conceive, put together, draw up, produce, develop, formulate; informal cook up.
this will lay a new responsibility on the court : IMPOSE, apply, entrust, vest, place, put; inflict, encumber, saddle, charge, burden.
the eagles laid two eggs : PRODUCE; Zoology oviposit.
25A0; lay something aside
farmers laying aside areas for conservation : PUT ASIDE, put to one side, keep, save.
producers must lay aside their conservatism : ABANDON, cast aside, reject, renounce, repudiate, disregard, forget, discard; poetic/literary forsake.
protesters led the government to lay the plans aside : DEFER, shelve, suspend, put on ice, mothball, set aside, put off/aside; informal put on the back burner.
25A0; lay something bare REVEAL, disclose, divulge, show, expose, exhibit, uncover, unveil, unmask, make a clean breast of, make known, make public.
25A0; lay something down
he laid down his glass : PUT DOWN, set down, place down, deposit, rest; informal dump, plonk down; Brit. informal bung down.
they were forced to lay down their weapons : RELINQUISH, surrender, give up, yield, cede; disarm, give in, submit, capitulate.
the ground rules have been laid down : FORMULATE, stipulate, set down, draw up, frame; prescribe, ordain, dictate, decree; enact, pass, decide, determine, impose, codify.
laying down wine : STORE, put into store, keep.
25A0; lay down the law ORDER SOMEONE ABOUT/AROUND, tell someone what to do, ride roughshod over someone; informal boss someone about/around, throw one's weight about/around, push someone about/around.
25A0; lay eyes on (informal) SEE, spot, observe, regard, view, catch sight of; informal clap/set eyes on; poetic/literary behold, espy, descry.
25A0; lay hands on
wait till I lay my hands on you! : CATCH, lay/get hold of, get one's hands on, seize, grab, grasp, capture.
it's not easy to lay your hands on decent champagne : OBTAIN, acquire, get, come by, find, locate, discover, unearth, uncover, pick up, procure, get one's hands on, get possession of, buy, purchase.
the pastor laid hands on the children : BLESS, consecrate; confirm; ordain.
25A0; lay something in STOCK UP WITH/ON, stockpile, store (up), amass, hoard, stow (away), put aside/away/by, garner, collect, squirrel away; informal salt away, stash (away).
25A0; lay into (informal)
a policeman laying into a protestor. : See assault verb sense 1.
he laid into her with a string of insults. : See criticize .
25A0; lay it on thick (informal) EXAGGERATE, overdo it, embellish the truth; flatter, praise; informal pile it on, sweet-talk, soft-soap.
25A0; lay off (informal) GIVE UP, stop, refrain from, abstain from, desist from, cut out; informal pack in, leave off, quit.
25A0; lay someone off MAKE REDUNDANT, dismiss, let go, discharge, give notice to; informal sack, fire, give someone their cards, give someone their marching orders, give someone the boot/push, give someone the (old) heave-ho.
25A0; lay something on PROVIDE, supply, furnish, line up, organize, prepare, produce, make available; informal fix up.
25A0; lay someone out (informal) KNOCK OUT/DOWN, knock unconscious, fell, floor, flatten; informal KO, kayo; Brit. informal knock for six.
25A0; lay something out
Robyn laid the plans out on the desk : SPREAD OUT, set out, display, exhibit.
a paper laying out our priorities : OUTLINE, sketch out, rough out, detail, draw up, formulate, work out, frame, draft.
(informal) he had to lay out £70. : See pay verb sense 2.
25A0; lay waste DEVASTATE, wipe out, destroy, demolish, annihilate, raze, ruin, wreck, level, flatten, ravage, pillage, sack, despoil.