I. ˈlāə(r), ˈle(ə)r, ˈleə noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English leyer, legger, from leyen, leggen to lay + -er
1. : one that lays: as
a. obsolete : mason
b. : one whose work is laying something — usually used in combination
brick layer
c. : a hen that lays or is kept to lay eggs
d. : one who lays odds : bookmaker
e. : a machine for twisting strands in making rope
f. : a workman who removes sheets of handmade paper from the felts after pressing — called also layerman, layman
g. : a member of a gun crew who lays the gun
2.
a. : one thickness, course, or fold laid or lying over or under another
layer of bricks
layer of plaster
layer of paint
layer of veneer
several layers of clothing
layers of an onion
upper layers of the atmosphere
b. : stratum , bed
layer of clay
layer of sandstone
fill the dish with alternate layers of potatoes and cheese
c. : horizon 2
d. : any of several strata of plant forms in an ecological association
a moss layer in a bog
3.
a. : a branch or shoot of a plant treated to induce rooting while still attached to the parent plant (as by mounding with soil or by bending over and covering often intermittently with soil) — compare stool
b. : a plant prepared by layering
4.
a. dialect England : a field in which a grass and a grain crop are planted together with the grass crop growing up after the grain is harvested
b. archaic : earth suitable for cultivation : soil
c. : lea 2b
5. obsolete : an artificial oyster bed
6. : a pit of strong tanning liquor into which hides are put on coming from the handler
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
transitive verb
: to propagate (a plant) by means of layers — see air layering , marcottage
intransitive verb
1. : to separate into layers
mists layered thick about him — Stewart Toland
2. of a plant : to multiply by layering ; especially : to form roots where a stem comes in contact with the ground
many brambles spread by layering under natural conditions
III. transitive verb
1.
a. : to place as a layer
jackets roomy enough to be layered over sweaters
b. : to place a layer on top of
pancakes layered with butter and maple syrup
c. : to form or arrange in layers
intransitive verb
: to form out of superimposed layers