lay down
verb
laid down; laying down; lays down
1
: to give up : surrender
lay down your arms
2
4
a
: to direct toward a target
lay down a barrage
b
: to hit along the ground
laid down a sacrifice bunt
nonstandard
: to lie down
Examples of lay down in a Sentence
the city council promises to lay down new ordinances that will force dog walkers to clean up after their animals
at the risk of their popularity, the parents laid down the rules for the party and wouldn't accept any arguments
Recent Examples on the Web
If a user is already feeling sick, laying down in a dark room with a cool, damp towel over the eyes can help.
—
Lauren Wellbank, Parents, 8 May 2024
Explore our new section California has laid down mandates to dump diesel trucks and replace them with lower-carbon technologies in increasing numbers until 2035, when sale of new diesel trucks will be banned.
—Russ Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2024
And finally, the women of the Palm Royale almost certainly won’t take Maxine’s revealing of their darkest secrets during the Beach Ball laying down, either.
—Brande Victorian, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
There is little reason to believe that the Biden administration’s efforts to lay down a post-Gaza peace plan will be any more successful.
—Tom Segev, Foreign Affairs, 23 Apr. 2024
The idea was to designate the base of the Anthropocene as the layer of Crawford Lake sediment laid down in 1952—and, more specifically, as the 1952 layer preserved in one particular core kept in a freezer in Quebec.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2024
Workers laid down purple tracks last week during renovation work to adapt the Stade de France.
—Patrick Smith, NBC News, 15 Apr. 2024
Heritage's Gabi Kelly laid down a nice squeeze bunt to score a run and another run scored on the play thanks to a Gentry throwing error for a 3-2 lead.
—Paul Boyd, arkansasonline.com, 12 Apr. 2024
After a single by Gavin Kelley, Ezekiel Vargas laid down a run-scoring bunt single to give the Knights the lead.
—Michael Huntley, Orange County Register, 11 Apr. 2024
Lauren Wellbank, Parents, 8 May 2024
Explore our new section California has laid down mandates to dump diesel trucks and replace them with lower-carbon technologies in increasing numbers until 2035, when sale of new diesel trucks will be banned.
—Russ Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2024
And finally, the women of the Palm Royale almost certainly won’t take Maxine’s revealing of their darkest secrets during the Beach Ball laying down, either.
—Brande Victorian, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
There is little reason to believe that the Biden administration’s efforts to lay down a post-Gaza peace plan will be any more successful.
—Tom Segev, Foreign Affairs, 23 Apr. 2024
The idea was to designate the base of the Anthropocene as the layer of Crawford Lake sediment laid down in 1952—and, more specifically, as the 1952 layer preserved in one particular core kept in a freezer in Quebec.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2024
Workers laid down purple tracks last week during renovation work to adapt the Stade de France.
—Patrick Smith, NBC News, 15 Apr. 2024
Heritage's Gabi Kelly laid down a nice squeeze bunt to score a run and another run scored on the play thanks to a Gentry throwing error for a 3-2 lead.
—Paul Boyd, arkansasonline.com, 12 Apr. 2024
After a single by Gavin Kelley, Ezekiel Vargas laid down a run-scoring bunt single to give the Knights the lead.
—Michael Huntley, Orange County Register, 11 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lay down.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to lay down
Video
Lay vs. Lie
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
Dictionary Entries Near lay down
Cite this Entry
“Lay down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lay%20down. Accessed 13 May. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share