• of Lie, to recline. • Of or pertaining to the laity, as distinct from the clergy; as, a lay person; a lay preacher; a lay brother. • Not educated or cultivated; ignorant. • Not belonging to, or emanating from, a particular profession; unprofessional; as, a lay opinion regarding the nature of a disease. • The laity; the common people. • A meadow. See Lea. • Faith; creed; religious profession. • A law. • An obligation; a vow. • A song; a simple lyrical poem; a ballad. • A melody; any musical utterance. • To cause to lie down, to be prostrate, or to lie against something; to put or set down; to deposit; as, to lay a book on the table; to lay a body in the grave; a shower lays the dust. • To place in position; to establish firmly; to arrange with regularity; to dispose in ranks or tiers; as, to lay a corner stone; to lay bricks in a wall; to lay the covers on a table. • To prepare; to make ready; to contrive; to provide; as, to lay a snare, an ambush, or a plan. • To spread on a surface; as, to lay plaster or paint. • To cause to be still; to calm; to allay; to suppress; to exorcise, as an evil spirit. • To cause to lie dead or dying. • To deposit, as a wager; to stake; to risk. • To bring forth and deposit; as, to lay eggs. • To apply; to put. • To impose, as a burden, suffering, or punishment; to assess, as a tax; as, to lay a tax on land. • To impute; to charge; to allege. • To impose, as a command or a duty; as, to lay commands on one. • To present or offer; as, to lay an indictment in a particular county; to lay a scheme before one. • To state; to allege; as, to lay the venue. • To point; to aim; as, to lay a gun. • To put the strands of (a rope, a cable, etc.) in their proper places and twist or unite them; as, to lay a cable or rope. • To place and arrange (pages) for a form upon the imposing stone. • To place (new type) properly in the cases. • To produce and deposit eggs. • To take a position; to come or go; as, to lay forward; to lay aloft. • To lay a wager; to bet. • That which lies or is laid or is conceived of as having been laid or placed in its position; a row; a stratum; a layer; as, a lay of stone or wood. • A wager. • A job, price, or profit. • A share of the proceeds or profits of an enterprise; as, when a man ships for a whaling voyage, he agrees for a certain lay. • A measure of yarn; a lea. See 1st Lea (a). • The lathe of a loom. See Lathe, 3. • A plan; a scheme. • of Lie