verb, lay, lain, ly⋅ing, noun | 1. | to be in a horizontal, recumbent, or prostrate position, as on a bed or the ground; recline. |
| 2. | (of objects) to rest in a horizontal or flat position: The book lies on the table. |
| 3. | to be or remain in a position or state of inactivity, subjection, restraint, concealment, etc.: to lie in ambush. |
| 4. | to rest, press, or weigh (usually fol. by on or upon): These things lie upon my mind. |
| 5. | to depend (usually fol. by on or upon). |
| 6. | to be placed or situated: land lying along the coast. |
| 7. | to be stretched out or extended: the broad plain that lies before us. |
| 8. | to be in or have a specified direction; extend: The trail from here lies to the west. |
| 9. | to be found or located in a particular area or place: The fault lies here. |
| 10. | to consist or be grounded (usually fol. by in): The real remedy lies in education. |
| 11. | to be buried in a particular spot: Their ancestors lie in the family plot. |
| 12. | Law. to be sustainable or admissible, as an action or appeal. |
| 13. | Archaic. to lodge; stay the night; sojourn. |
| 14. | the manner, relative position, or direction in which something lies. |
| 15. | the haunt or covert of an animal. |
| 16. | Golf. the position of the ball relative to how easy or how difficult it is to play. |
| 17. | lie by,
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| 18. | lie down, to assume a horizontal or prostrate position, as for the purpose of resting. |
| 19. | lie in, to be confined to bed in childbirth. |
| 20. | lie over, to be postponed for attention or action at some future time: The other business on the agenda will have to lie over until the next meeting. |
| 21. | lie up,
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| 22. | lie with,
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| 23. | lie down on the job, Informal. to do less than one could or should do; shirk one's obligations. |
| 24. | lie in state. state (def. 24). |
| 25. | lie low. low 1 (def. 51). |
| 26. | lie to, Nautical. (of a ship) to lie comparatively stationary, usually with the head as near the wind as possible. |
| 27. | take lying down, to hear or yield without protest, contradiction, or resistance: I refuse to take such an insult lying down. |

lie 1 (lī) intr.v. lay (lā), lain (lān), ly·ing (lī'ĭng), lies
lie downTo do little or nothing: He's lying down on the job. lie inTo be in confinement for childbirth. lie to Nautical To remain stationary while facing the wind. lie with
Idiom(s): lie/lay low
[Middle English lien, from Old English licgan; see legh- in Indo-European roots.] |
lie (lī)
n.
The manner or position in which something is situated, especially the relation that the long axis of a fetus bears to that of its mother.
lie in
Be in confinement for childbirth, as in She thought she'd be lying in by next week. This usage is probably dying out. The name of Boston's Lying-In Hospital was changed to Women's Hospital in the 1970s. [Mid-1400s]
Also, lie in one's hands or in one's power. Rest or depend on something or someone, as in The solution lies in research, or The decision lies in the President's hands, or It does not lie in my power to turn this situation around. [Mid-1300s] Also see lie in wait; lie through one's teeth.