lay down

Fetched 2026-11-13 (live).

Synonyms: play down, pay down, lays down, laydown, lay-down, lie down, let down, lay low, laid down, lay on, slap down

Antonyms: play down, pay down, lays down, laydown, lay-down, lie down, let down, lay low, laid down, lay on, slap down

Related words from Datamuse; suggestions, not definitions.

Verb

1. To give up, surrender, or yield (e.g. a weapon), usually by placing it on the ground.
   • The police urged the gunman to lay down his weapon.
   • Lay down your arms.
2. To place or install on the ground, e.g. a railway on a trackbed.
   • lay down a mat; lay down asphalt; lay down a road
3. To intentionally take a fall while riding a motorcycle, in order to prevent a more serious collision.
   • He laid down his brand-new Harley-Davidson to avoid the oncoming bus.
4. To specify, institute, enact, assert firmly, state authoritatively, establish or formulate (rules or policies).
   • Let's lay down the rules right at the beginning, so we are consistent.
   • You've got to lay down the law with that boy.
5. To stock, store (e.g. wine) for the future. See also lay by.
6. To kill (someone).
7. To euthanize an animal.
8. To sacrifice, especially in the phrase "to lay down one's life."
9. To lie down.
   • I feel a bit ill, so I'm going to go lay down for a while.
10. To draw the lines of a ship's hull at full size, before starting a build.
11. To place a sheet in a printing press for printing.

Verb

1. simple past of lie down
   • He lay down in his bed until he felt better.

Source: Wiktionary · CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wiktionary) · cached copy, not a rewrite.