16. (Rope Making) 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.
17. (Print.) (a) To place and arrange (pages) for a form upon the
imposing stone. (b) To place (new type) properly in the cases.
To lay asleep, to put sleep; to make unobservant or careless. Bacon. --
To lay bare, to make bare; to strip.
And laid those proud roofs bare to summer's rain.
Byron.
-- To lay before, to present to; to submit for consideration; as, the
papers are laid before Congress. -- To lay by. (a) To save. (b) To
discard.
Let brave spirits . . . not be laid by.
Bacon.
-- To lay by the heels, to put in the stocks. Shak. -- To lay down. (a)
To stake as a wager. (b) To yield; to relinquish; to surrender; as, to
lay down one's life; to lay down one's arms. (c) To assert or advance,
as a proposition or principle. -- To lay forth. (a) To extend at
length; (reflexively) to exert one's self; to expatiate. [Obs.] (b) To
lay out (as a corpse). [Obs.] Shak. -- To lay hands on, to seize. -- To
lay hands on one's self, or To lay violent hands on one's self, to
injure one's self; specif., to commit suicide. -- To lay heads
together, to consult. -- To lay hold of, or To lay hold on, to seize;
to catch. -- To lay in, to store; to provide. -- To lay it on, to apply
without stint. Shak. -- To lay on, to apply with force; to inflict; as,
to lay on blows. -- To lay on load, to lay on blows; to strike
violently. [Obs. or Archaic] -- To lay one's self out, to strive
earnestly.
No selfish man will be concerned to lay out himself for the good of
his country.
Smalridge.
-- To lay one's self open to, to expose one's self to, as to an
accusation. -- To lay open, to open; to uncover; to expose; to reveal.
- - To lay over, to spread over; to cover. - - To lay out. (a) To
expend. Macaulay. (b) To display; to discover. (c) To plan in detail;
to arrange; as, to lay out a garden. (d) To prepare for burial; as, to
lay out a corpse. (e) To exert; as, to lay out all one's strength. --
To lay siege to. (a) To besiege; to encompass with an army. (b) To
beset pertinaciously. -- To lay the course (Naut.), to sail toward the
port intended without jibing. -- To lay the land (Naut.), to cause it
to disappear below the horizon, by sailing away from it. -- To lay to
(a) To charge upon; to impute. (b) To apply with vigor. (c) To attack
or harass. [Obs.] Knolles. (d) (Naut.) To check the motion of (a
vessel) and cause it to be stationary. -- To lay to heart, to feel
deeply; to consider earnestly. -- To lay under, to subject to; as, to
lay under obligation or restraint. -- To lay unto. (a) Same as To lay
to (above). (b) To put before. Hos. xi. 4. -- To lay up. (a) To store;
to reposit for future use. (b) To confine; to disable. (c) To
dismantle, and retire from active service, as a ship. -- To lay wait
for, to lie in ambush for. -- To lay waste, to destroy; to make
desolate; as, to lay waste the land.
Syn. -- See Put, v. t., and the Note under 4th Lie.
Lay, v. i. 1. To produce and deposit eggs.
2. (Naut.) To take a position; to come or go; as, to lay forward; to
lay aloft.