▪ I. lie, n.1
(laɪ)
Forms: 1 lyᵹe, liᵹe, 3–4 leȝe, leye, lighe, liyhe (pl. leis), 3–5 legh(e, 4 lyȝe, 4–8 lye, 5– 6, 9 (Sc. and north. dial.) lee (pl. lees, 6 leis), 5 le, 5, 7 ly, 6 Sc. ley, 4– lie.
[OE. lyᵹe str. masc. = OHG. lug (MHG. luc, inflected lug-; mod.G. lug):—OTeut. type *lugi-z, f. *lug- wk.-grade of *leug-, OE. léoᵹan: see lie v.2 Cf. the synonymous OHG. lugîn fem. (MHG., mod.G. lüge), ON. lygi fem. The formal identity between the n. and the vb. is a result of convergent sound-change. In northern dialects the plural lees is liable to confusion with lease n.2]
1. a. An act or instance of lying; a false statement made with intent to deceive; a criminal falsehood. Phrase, to tell († formerly to make) a lie. † Also, without lie, no lie, truly (often as an expletive in ME. poetry; cf. without fable).
In mod. use, the word is normally a violent expression of moral reprobation, which in polite conversation tends to be avoided, the synonyms falsehood and untruth being often substituted as relatively euphemistic.
| c 900 tr. Bæda's Hist. iii. xiv. [xix.] (1890) 212 An is ærest lyᵹes [v.r. liᵹes] fyr [L. unum (sc. ignem) mendacii]. a 1000 Cædmon's Christ & Satan 53 (Gr.-Wülk. II. 525) Þu us ᵹelær⁓dæst þurh lyᵹe ðinne. a 1300 E.E. Psalter v. 7 That lighe [MS. Harl. liyhe] spekes leses tou mare and lesse. Ibid. lviii. 13 Of legh, and of cursinge, Sal þai be schewed in endinge. a 1300 Cursor M. 13941 (Cott.) Sal yee na leis here o mi toth. c 1300 Havelok 2117 Mo þan an hundred, with-uten leye. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (Rolls) 10587 Of Arthure ys seid many selcouþ..Al ys nougt soþ, ne nought al lye. a 1340 Hampole Psalter xxvi. 18 A wicked spekere delited is in his leghe. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. A. 304 Much to blame..Þat louez [read leuez] oure lorde wolde make a lyȝe. c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. Prol. 12 Men schal nat wenyn euery thyng a lye For that he say it nat of ȝore a-go. c 1400 Destr. Troy 12594 Thies foure in hor falshode had forget a lie. c 1470 Harding Chron. vii. vii, Iubiter gate Dardanus no lee. 1500–20 Dunbar Poems lix. 13 [Who] in my name all leis recordis. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon xlvi. 155 Oberon neuer as yet made any lye to you. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. iii. iv. 74 And twentie of these punie lies Ile tell. a 1618 Raleigh Mahomet (1637) 146 He was never known to make a Ly. a 1651 Calderwood Hist. Kirk (1843) II. 153 They doe receave but the lees of men for the truthe of God. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. i. xi. 51 Able to make a man both to believe lyes, and tell them. 1727 De Foe Hist. Appar. i. (1840) 11 Sarah was the first..that ever told God a lie to his face. a 1764 Lloyd Ep. to C. Churchill Poet. Wks. 1774 I. 88 Shrewd Suspicion..To truth declar'd, prefers a whisper'd lye. 1791 Boswell Johnson an. 1781 (1848) 670/1 Johnson had accustomed himself to use the word lie, to express a mistake or an errour in relation..though the relater did not mean to deceive. 1796 Nelson 24 July in Nicolas Disp. (1846) VII. xciii, The lie of the day is, that Archduke Charles has requested an Armistice, which the French General positively refused. 1816 Scott Antiq. xxi, For they were queer hands the monks, unless mony lees is made on them. 1820 Coleridge Lett., Convers., etc. I. 119, I am almost inclined to reverse the proverb and say ‘What every one says must be a lie’. 1879 Froude Cæsar xx. 339 It was perhaps a lie invented by political malignity. |
b. white lie: a consciously untrue statement which is not considered criminal; a falsehood rendered venial or praiseworthy by its motive.
| 1741 in Gentl. Mag. XI. 647 A certain Lady of the highest Quality..makes a judicious Distinction between a white Lie and a black Lie. A white Lie is That which is not intended to injure any Body in his Fortune, Interest, or Reputation but only to gratify a garrulous Disposition and the Itch of amusing People by telling Them wonderful Stories. 1785 Paley Mor. Philos. (1818) I. 187 White lies always introduce others of a darker complexion. 1833 Marryat P. Simple xxxiv, All lies disgrace a gentleman, white or black. 1857 C. Reade (title) White Lies. |
c. transf. Something grossly deceptive; an imposture.
| 1560 Bible (Geneva) Ps. lxii. 9 Yet the children of men are vanitie, the chief men are lies [1611 men of high degree are a lie]. 1649 Bp. Reynolds Hosea iv. 59 The very formality of an Idol is to be a lye, to stand for that which it is not. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones xi. v, How is it possible for a Man to maintain a constant Lie in his Appearance [etc.]? 1842 Miall in Nonconf. II. 177 Homage the most indirect paid to the state church is..the worship of a lie. 1851 Ruskin Stones Ven. (1874) I. i. 28 The sculptor of this base and senseless lie [the Vendramin statue]. |
2. a. to give the lie (to): to accuse (a person) to his face of lying. Also transf. of facts, actions, etc.: to prove the falsity of, to contradict (appearances, professions).
| 1593 R. Bancroft Daung. Posit. i. iii. 13 They gaue the Queene the lie. 1599 H. Buttes Dyets drie Dinner C ij, Though Galen saith,..yet experience gives him the lye. 1610 Shakes. Temp. iii. ii. 85 Giue me the lye another time. c 1600 Raleigh The Farewell 6 Go, since I needs must die, And give them all the lie. 1638 Baker tr. Balzac's Lett. (vol. II.) 83 Tertullian..therein gives the lie to all antiquitie. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 99 ¶7 The great Violation of the Point of Honour from Man to Man, is giving the Lye. 1768 W. Donaldson Life Sir B. Sapskull II. 110 She gave him the lie for his civility, by assuring him she eat very hearty. 1805 T. Lindley Voy. Brasil (1808) 115 Replies..that nearly gave the lie to his pretended superior knowledge. 1823 Scott Quentin D. xxvi, Francis the First, and the Emperor Charles, gave each other the lie direct. 1856 Reade Never too Late xxiv, Am I to understand that you give Mr. Hawes the lie? |
b. Hence occas. the lie is used for: The action of giving the lie; the charge of falsehood.
| 1593 Shakes. Rich. II, iv. i. 66 That Lye, shall lie so heauy on my Sword, That [etc.]. 1600 Rowlands Lett. Humours Blood iii. 61 Astronomers..By common censure somtimes meete the lie. 1705 Hickeringill Priest-cr. i. (1721) 17 The other gives him the Lye..and follows his Lye with a Stab. 1732 Berkeley Alciphr. iii. §2 He abhors to take the Lye but not to tell it. |
3. attrib. and Comb.; chiefly objective, as in lie-giving, lie-hater, lie-monger, lie-teller, lie-writer; lie-consuming adj.; † lie-bill nonce-wd., a distortion of libel n.; lie-detector orig. U.S., an instrument intended to indicate when a person is lying by detecting changes in his physiological characteristics; lie-tea, said to be a transl. of the name given by the Chinese to teas coloured for the European market.
| 1620 Melton Astrolog. 61 Pasquil and Morphirius, on whose brests were written no *Lie-Bills, as the Popes called them, but True-Bills of their villanies. |
| 1822 Shelley Hellas 985 Thy *lie-consuming mirror. |
| 1909 C. E. Walk Yellow Circle iv. 69 It is a *lie detector... You set some wheels going. 1922 Rep. 45th Ann. Meeting Amer. Bar Assoc. 619 (heading) The Berkeley Lie Detector and other deception tests. 1933 PMLA XLVIII. 609 These views lead to such revolting pseudo-scientific nonsense as the use..of a lie detector apparatus in order to convict defendants. 1962 [see galvanic a. a]. 1971 Daily Tel. 28 July 4/8 About 30 employees..have been given lie-detector tests in the fight against pilfering. It is believed to be the first use of ‘polygraph interviews’, as the tests are called, in New York shops. 1974 ‘A. Garve’ File on Lester ii. 9 When a politician talks of frankness most voters reach for their lie-detectors. |
| 1848 Thackeray Bk. Snobs xxxix, *Lie-givings, challenges, retractations. |
| 1900 York Powell in St. George III. 66 We at least will be a people of truth-lovers and *lie-haters. |
| 1830 James Darnley xxxiv, The tales that were circulated by the *liemongers of the court. |
| 1876 A. H. Hassall Food 114 This article has received the name of ‘*lie-tea’ because it is spurious, and for the most part, not tea at all. |
| 1552 Huloet, *Lye teller, or liynge knaue or queane. a 1641 Bp. R. Montagu Acts & Mon. (1642) 215 The end and purpose of the lye-teller. |
| 1863 N. & Q. 3rd Ser. III. 300 We would advise him to give more attention to the contemporary libellers and *lie-writers. |
Sense 3 in Dict. becomes 4. Add: 3. In weakened or non-pejorative sense: an anecdote, tale, ‘tall story’. lie and story, gossip. orig. and chiefly Black English.
| 1934 Z. N. Hurston Jonah's Gourd Vine vi. 105 Y'all wanta heah some lies? 1935 Z. N. Hurston Mules & Men i. ii. 37 ‘Zora,..you come to the right place if lies is what you want. Ah'm gointer lie up a nation.’... It was a hilarious night with a pinch of everything social mixed with the story-telling. 1943 Cassidy & Le Page Dict. Jamaican Eng. (1967) 274/2 Lie an story, gossip. 1950 L. Bennett et al. Anancy Stories & Dial. Verse 33 Him start fe carry lie and story between dem and start big kas-kas. 1960 P. Oliver Blues fell this Morning vi. 152 When there is nothing else to do he joins his fellows to tell ‘lies’. 1966 D. J. Crowley I could talk Old-Story Good ii. 14 The narrators themselves refer to a tale as ‘a wonderful lie’, but they mean to indicate a work of the imagination rather than an untruth. 1977 in J. L. Dillard Lexicon Black Eng. viii. 139 Sometimes the joke, or the lie told, makes up the better part of the occasion. |
▪ II. lie, n.2
(laɪ)
Also 7 lye.
[f. lie v.1]
1. a. Manner of lying; direction or position in which something lies; direction and amount of slope or inclination. Also fig. the state, position, or aspect (of affairs, etc.). Phr. the lie of the land.
| 1697 Collect. Connect. Hist. Soc. (1897) VI. 248 Nott to alter the proper lye of the Land. 1843 Ruskin Mod. Paint. (1851) I. ii. vi. i. §30. 399 The general lie and disposition of the boughs. 1849 J. F. W. Johnston Exper. Agric. 101 On what geological formation the land rests—its physical position or lie. 1850 J. H. Newman Diffic. Anglic. 325 To map out the field of thought..and to ascertain its lie and its characteristics. 1862 Trollope N. Amer. II. 2 Washington, from the lie of the land, can hardly have been said to be centrical at any time. 1865 Carlyle Fredk. Gt. xx. iii. (1872) IX. 44 Friedrich understands well enough..from the lie of matters, what his plan will be. 1894 Baring-Gould Deserts S. France I. 15 The horizontal lie of the chalk beds. 1894 Besant In Deacon's Orders 83 The lie of his hair, his pose [etc.]. 1950 E. H. Gombrich Story of Art 1 To show the newcomer the lie of the land without confusing him with details. 1956 M. Lowry Let. 13 Nov. (1967) 392 If anyone is to blame it is I, for not giving you the lie of the land before. 1966 D. Varaday Gara-Yaka's Domain xi. 123 The quick powers of grasping a situation with which all game are endowed, showed themselves in the speedy summing-up by the leading boar, as he got the lie of the land. |
b. Golf. (a) ‘The inclination of a club when held on the ground in the natural position for striking’. (b) ‘The situation of a ball—good or bad’. (Badm. Libr., Golf Gloss.)
| 1857 H. B. Farnie Golfer's Manual in Golfiana Misc. (1887) 126 The precise lie [of the ball] it [the niblick] is intended for so seldom occurs. Ibid. 141 The lie of these spoons should be rather upright. 1887 W. G. Simpson Art Golf 152 From a bad lie it is the only way I know of to loft a ball. 1890 Hutchinson Golf 58 An important consideration is the ‘lie’ of the driving club. |
2. concr. A mass that lies; a stratum, layer.
| a 1728 Woodward Nat. Hist. Fossils i. (1729) I. 12 Not in regular orderly Strata..as Stone-lies, and various sorts of Earth which are in their original State. 1865 Swinburne Phaedra 153 The heifer..sleek under shaggy and speckled lies of hair. |
3. The place where an animal, etc. is accustomed to lie; to haunt. Also, room for lying.
| 1869 Blackmore Lorna D. vii, There were very fine loaches here, having more lie and harbourage than in the rough Lynn stream. 1886 Q. Rev. Oct. 359 note, At other times he [a salmon] is usually resting in his ‘stand’ or ‘lie’. 1888 Rider Haggard Maiwa's Rev. i. 2 A long narrow spinney which was a very favourite ‘lie’ for woodcock. |
4. Railways. ‘A siding or short offset from the main line, into which trucks may be run for the purpose of loading and unloading’ (Cent. Dict.). (See also lye n.2)
5. A period of resting or lying (esp. in bed). See also lie-down, -in, -up below.
| 1930 L. Cooper Ship of Truth i. 30 Sunday was their one chance of a long lie. 1938 D. du Maurier Rebecca xvii. 271 Have a good long lie tomorrow morning. Don't attempt to get up. |
6. lie-about, an idle person, one of no fixed occupation, a disreputable ‘character’; = layabout; lie-down colloq., a rest (on a bed, etc.); a form of protest in which the participants lie on the ground and refuse to move; lie-in colloq. = sense 5; also, as a form of protest, = prec.; lie-up, the fact of lying inactive in a place.
| 1937 M. Allingham Dancers in Mourning ii. 27 He took out a wallet which would have disgraced a lie-about. 1956 Daily Mail 26 Apr. 1/1 They are called champions of the prize ring but on Tuesday they appeared as two fat and horizontal lie-abouts. 1961 Guardian 27 Jan. 9/4 This former lie-about has got himself married. |
| 1840 H. Mozley Let. 13 Oct. in D. Mozley Newman Family Lett. (1962) 93, I should be very glad of a lie down but cannot. 1850 C. Kingsley Alton Locke I. v. 80 You must keep moving all night..or else you goes to a twopenny-rope shop and gets a lie down. 1919 W. S. Maugham Moon & Sixpence xlvii. 202 When..we hadn't even got the price of a lie down at the Chink's, he'd be as lively as a cricket. 1928 St. John Ervine Four One-Act Plays 65 Yes, Aggie, you go an' 'ave a lie-down, see, and you'll be all right. 1936 Time 7 Dec., Second Sit-Down, Lie-Down... Twelve women and forty-five men, picketing the Berkshire Knitting Mills in Reading, Pennsylvania, by lying flat on its ice-covered front walk..were arrested. 1970 D. Balsdon Oxf. Then & Now iii. v. 114 It is..the small body of demonstrators with whom we are here concerned—in particular the sit-down or lie-down to impede the Vice-Chancellor and Proctors in the exercise of their proper duties on November 5th, 1968. 1974 M. Birmingham You can help Me ii. 43, I won't risk our clients to you in your concussed state... Why don't you go and have a little lie-down? |
| 1867 T. Wright Some Habits Working Classes iii. 206 The luxury of ‘a long lie in’, is the earliest and most universal of the delights of a working man's Sunday. 1916 ‘Taffrail’ Pincher Martin xvi. 300 Lucky dogs!.. You've got a lie in. I envy you. This is a night for poor old Peter to be at sea. 1932 C. L. Morgan Fountain ii. iv. 120 He left orders you was both to have a lie-in this morning. 1959 G. Freeman Jack would be Gent. ix. 192 I'm going to 'ave a bit of a lie in..seeing I'm on 'oliday. 1964 Tuscaloosa (Alabama) News 20 Apr. 1/8 The reported demonstration plans grew—from an auto stall-in on access roads to the fair to sit-ins, lie-ins and alike on other major highways, bridges and in tunnels throughout the city. 1971 Time 27 Dec. 40 Last week pollution protesters staged a lie-in at government offices in Tokyo. |
| 1908 J. W. Tyrrell Across Sub-Arctics of Canada (ed. 3) 222 The two hundred mile tramp..had hardened our muscles so much that, with the ten days' ‘lie-up’ on the bank of the Nelson River,..we were now in first-class walking trim. 1926 Blackw. Mag. Dec. 850/2 We settled ourselves down for a happy four months of ‘lie-up’. |
▪ III. † lie, a.1 Obs.
[OE. lyᵹe, cogn. w. lyᵹe lie n.1]
Lying, false.
| c 975 Rushw. Gosp. Matt. xxvi. 60 Moniᵹe lyᵹe ᵹewitu. c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 319/688 Hinderful and of bost I-nouȝ, hardi and ofte lie. |
▪ IV. lie, v.1
(laɪ)
Forms and inflexions: see below.
[A Com. Teut. str. vb.: OE. licgan = OFris. liga, lidsa, lidzia, OS. liggian (Du., LG. liggen), OHG. and MHG. liggen, licken, ligen (mod.G. liegen), ON. liggia (Sw. ligga, Da. ligge), Goth. ligan:—OTeut. *ligjan (the Goth. ligan is abnormal), f. Teut. root *leg- (:lag-:lǣg-):—West Aryan *legh- (:logh-:lēgh-) to lie; cf. Gr. λέχος bed, ἄλοχος bedfellow, wife, λόχος lying in wait, ambush, L. lectus bed, OSl. ležati to lie.
As in OTeut. *sitjan sit v., the present-stem has a j suffix, though the pa. tense and pa. pple. are strong. In WGer. and consequently in OE., the pres.-stem has two forms, due to the diversity in the phonetic character of the flexional suffixes: (1) The WGer. lig-, OE. liᵹ-, appears in the 2nd and 3rd pers. sing. pres. ind. and the sing. imp., and is the source of the mod.Eng. lie; (2) the WGer. ligg-, OE. licᵹ-, appears in the inf., the 1st pers. sing. and the pl. pres. ind., the pres. subj., and the pl. imp.; it is represented in mod. northern dialects by lig; the southern lidge has been found only in the Wexford dialect, though the ME. ligge in southern texts can only represent the pronunciation (lɪdʒə).]
A. Inflexional Forms.
1. inf. lie. Forms: α1 licgan, licgean, Northumb. licga, 2 liggan, 2–5 ligge-n, 3 ligen, luggen (y), 4–5 lyge, lygge, 4–6 (7–9 dial.) lig, ligg, 5 ligyn, lyggyn, lyg, lyegge. β2 lien, 3 liᵹen, 3 lin, 4 lii, lij, li, lyen, (? erron. ley-n, leȝe, lai), 4–5 lyn(e, lyȝe, 4–8 ly, 4–9 lye, 5 liyn, lyyn, lyin, 4– lie. See also lig v.
| α Beowulf 3082 (Gr.) Lete hyne licgean, þær he longe wæs. c 1160 Hatton Gosp. John v. 6 Þa se hælend ᵹe-seah þisne liggan. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 79 Ho..letten hine liggen half quic. c 1205 Lay. 22836 Þer he scal liggen [c 1275 luggen]. a 1275 Prov. ælfred 467 in O.E. Misc. 131 He sal ligen long anicht. a 1275 Death 118 ibid. 174 Nu þu schalt wrecche liggen ful stille. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 3169 He bad him ligge and slepe wel. a 1300 Cursor M. 5309, I will me lig to dei. a 1340 Hampole Psalter v. 4, I sall noght lige in fleschy lustis. c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) xxv. 118 Whare þe emperour schall ligge on þe morue. 1425 Ord. Whittington's Alms-house in Entick London (1766) IV. 354 A..little house..in which he shall lyegge and rest. c 1440 [see β]. 1483 Cath. Angl. 216/1 To Lyg in wayte. 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal. Sept. 254 There mayst thou ligge in a vetchy bed. 1651 Randolph, etc. Hey for Honesty iii. i. Wks. (1875) 431 Liggen in strommel. a 1652 Brome Eng. Moor i. iii. Wks. (1873) II. 13 Make thy bed fine and soft I'le lig with thee. 1674 Ray N.C. Words 30 To Lig: to lye, Var. Dial. |
| β 1154 O.E. Chron. an. 1137 (Laud MS.) He ne myhte..ne sitten ne lien ne slepen. c 1200 Ormin 6020, & nile he nohht tærinne lin. a 1300 Cursor M. 3778 (Cott.) He..þar-on laid his hefd to li [Fairf. ly]. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints vii. (Jacobus minor) 482, & þare wele foure dais can þai ley but met & drink. 1382 Wyclif Isa. xi. 6 The parde with the kide shal leyn. c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 68, I lete it lie still. 1426 Lydg. De Guil. Pilgr. 13554 Lat hym lyn a whyle stylle. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 304/2 Lyyn or lyggyn (K. lyin or ligyn), jaceo. 1480 Caxton Chron. Eng. ccxlii. 277 They..charged hym to lye still. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. ix. II. 446 He might lie many years in a prison. |
2. ind. pres. a. 1st pers. sing. lie. Forms: α1 licge, 3–4 ligge, 4–6 (7– 9 dial.) lig, 5 lige. β4 liy, 4–9 lye, 6 ly, 4– lie.
| a 1240 Lofsong in Cott. Hom. 211 Ase ich ligge lowe. c 1275 Lay. 14137 Ihc ligge faste bi-clused in on castle. a 1300–1400 Cursor M. 3612 (Gött.) Here..i liy [other texts lig, lye] in bed of care. 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. v. 417, I..ligge abedde in lenten. 1432 Test. Ebor. II. 22, j matres y{supt} I lige on. 1530 Palsgr. 610/1, I lye a bedde. c 1586 C'tess Pembroke Ps. lvii. i, On thee I ly. 1688 Levinz in Keble Life Bp. Wilson iii. (1863) 99 When I lye under the confinement of my melancholy retreat. 1719 D'Urfey Pills (1872) II. 148 Thinking that I lig so nigh. 1801 R. Anderson Cumb. Ball. 17 At neet I lig me down. 1802 Coleridge Ode to Rain 5 O Rain! that I lie listening to. |
b. 2nd pers. sing. liest (ˈlaɪɪst). Forms: α1 liᵹest, liᵹst, l{iacu}st, 3–5 list, lyst, 4–9 lyest, 6–7 ly'st, 4– liest. Also north. 4 lyis, 5 lise, lyes. β5 lyggest, lyggyst.
| a 1000 Cædmon's Gen. 734 (Gr.) Þær þu ᵹebunden liᵹst. c 1000 ælfric Josh. vii. 10 Aris nu..hwi list ðu neowel on eorþan. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 103 Wi list þu turnd on þe eorðe? a 1275 Death 84 in O.E. Misc. 172 Nu þu list [v.r. lyst] on bere. c 1386 Chaucer Manciple's T. 172 Now listow deed [v.rr. lyst thow, liest thou, lyes thou]. c 1450 Cov. Myst. (Shaks. Soc.) 159 Heyl, Lord over lordys, that lyggyst ful lowe. 1470–85 Malory Arthur xxi. ii, Here now thow lyggest. 1596 Shakes. Tam. Shr. v. ii. 151 Whil'st thou ly'st warme at home. 1671 Milton Samson 1663 Thou..now ly'st victorious Among thy slain. 1877 C. Patmore Unknown Eros i. ix. (Eurydice), Where..On pallet poor Thou lyest, stricken sick. |
c. 3rd pers. sing. lies (laɪz). Forms: α1 liᵹeþ, liᵹþ, l{iacu}þ, 2–5 liþ, 3 liᵹið, 3–6 lyth, 4 lyþe, leiþ, lyhth, liȝth, lyȝt, liht, 4–5 lijth, lithe, 4– 6 lythe, 4–7 lyeth, 5–6 lyith, 3– (now arch.) lieth. Also (with ending orig. north.) 1 liᵹes, 4 lyse, lijs, 4–5 lis(e, 4–6 liis, 4–8 lyes, 5–6 lyis, lyese, 6 Sc. lysz, lisz, lyisz, 4– lies. β2–6 liggeþ, -eth, 4–5 liggith. Also 4 liggus, 4–5 ligus, -es, lygges, -ys, -ez, 5 ligis, 6 (7–9 dial.) lig(g)s.
| α a 900 O.E. Chron. an. 893 (Parker MS.) Seo ea..lið ut of þæm wealda. c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. viii. 6 Cnaeht min liᵹes in hus eorð-cryppel. a 1100 O.E. Chron. an. 675 (Laud MS.) Medeshamstede..& eal {thbar} þær to liggeð. Ibid. an. 792 His lic liᵹð æt Tinan muþe. c 1220 Bestiary 24 Ðanne he lieð to slepen. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 889 In ðe weie ðe liȝið to salem. a 1300 Cursor M. 2117 Þis land lies mast vnto þe south. 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. i. 115 Lucifer louwest liȝth of hem alle. c 1369 Chaucer Dethe Blaunche 181 A-wake..who lyeth there [v.rr. lythe, liþe]. 1382 Wyclif Matt. viii. 6 My child lyeth [v.r. liggeth, 1388 lijth]..sike. c 1400 Destr. Troy 5369 Teutra..here in tombe lis. c 1425 Hampole's Psalter Metr. Pref. 26 This same sauter..is þe self..That lyȝt at hampole. c 1475 Rauf Coilȝear 246, I haue na knawledge quhair the Court lyis. 1533 Gau Richt Vay 84 To say..that thair lisz mair pardone to ony oder prayer. c 1560 A. Scott Poems (S.T.S.) iv. 76 Sum can nocht keip hir gap Fra lansing, as scho lyiss. 1579 Lyly Euphues (Arb.) 86 As much as in me lyeth. 1611 Bible Neh. ii. 3 When the city..lyeth waste. 1660 Barrow Euclid i. xxvi, That side which lyeth betwixt the equal angles. 1666 Milton 2nd Epit. University Carrier 1 Here lieth one who [etc.]. 1675 Earl of Essex Lett. (1770) 88 That part of the town which..lyes to the water. 1711 Hearne Collect. (O.H.S.) III. 133 His skill indeed chiefly lyes in Coyns. |
| β a 1300 Cursor M. 2033 Þi fader slepand..Liggus [Gött. lis, Fairf. lyse, Trin. liþ] here-oute. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 1792 A dogge..þat in a dych lygges. a 1400–50 Alexander 5173 A cabayne quare þe kyng liggis. c 1460 Towneley Plays ii. 220 Gif hym that that ligis thore. 1597 Tofte Laura in Arb. Garner VIII. 298 Ah, happy thrice, that ligs in love with thee! 1605 Camden Rem., Epitaphs 59 Iohn Bell broken-brow Ligs vnder this stean. a 1774 Fergusson Hallowfair Poems (1845) 15 When Phœbus ligs in Thetis' lap. 1849 James Woodman xxxix, I can find out for him where liggs the pretty lass. 1865 S. Evans Bro. Fabian 52 Bold Robin he liggeth here. |
d. pl. lie. Forms: α1 licgaþ, licgeaþ, 2–3 liggeð, 4 liggiþ, 2–4 (6 arch.) liggen, 5 liggyn, 4 ligge, 5 lygge. Also north. 4 ligges, 5 liggez, liggis. β2–4 lien, 2–3 lin, 4–6 lyen, 5 lyȝn, lyun, 4–9 ly(e, 4– lie. Also north. 4 lijs, Sc. 4–6 lyis, lyes.
| α a 1000 Andreas 1426 (Gr.) Licgað æfter lande loccas todrifene. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 49 We liggeð in heueð sunnen. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 6355 Þere hii liggeþ. a 1300 Cursor M. 25965 Al ur sin þat we..ligges in [Fairf. lien]. 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. ii. 105 Thei liggen to-gedere. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) I. 403 They..Stondeþ, sitteþ, liggeþ, and slepeþ. Ibid. II. 193 Þey ligge [Caxton lygge] vpriȝt. a 1400–50 Alexander 772* Þar liggez lymmes of laddes. Ibid. 4845 Þai seȝe doun sodanly slane of þaire blonkis..& in þe strete liggis. 1486 Bk. St. Albans E vij b, The Forchers that liggyn euen between The ij theys of the beest. 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal. May 217 Many wyld beastes liggen in waite. |
| β a 1100 O.E. Chron. an. 963 (Laud MS.) Ealle þa þorpes þe ðærto lin. 1154 Ibid. an. 1137 Þe landes þe lien to þe circe wican. c 1230 Hali Meid. 3 Al þat bitter bale þat ter lieð under. a 1300 Cursor M. 5340 Þar lijs [Fairf. lyes] our heldres. c 1350 Will. Palerne 2266 In caue þei lyen, & slepen samen y-fere. c 1374 Chaucer Compl. Mars 5 Ye lovers that lye [v.r. ben] in eny drede. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xiv. (Lucas) 80, & ger thame ryse þat lyis law. c 1400 Mandeville (1839) xxiv. 255 Thei lyȝn in Tentes. c 1400 Destr. Troy 7966 Þe grekes, þat on oure ground lyun. 1448 in Willis & Clark Cambridge (1886) II. 8 All the bemes that lyen by hemself. 1513 Bradshaw St. Werburge i. 284 Whiche Ladyes were buryed..and now there lyen in shryne. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 54 Sum monstruous gret amang thame lyis to the cost of Carrik. Ibid. 148 In tyme of neid lyes the Pechtis abak w{supt} thair supporte. c 1614 Sir W. Mure Dido & æ. i. 101 Troy..Whose ruines poore, which low in ashes lye. 1711 J. Greenwood Eng. Gram. 197 Place and Things that ly upward. 1756–7 tr. Keysler's Trav. (1760) III. 104 Here lie the remains of Giacomo Sanseverini. 1808 A. Parsons Trav. i. 12 Pebbles, which have been dug up..and now lye in heaps. |
3. ind. pa. lay (leɪ). Forms: α(strong) 1st and 3rd pers. sing. 1 læᵹ, læiᵹ, 2 læi, 2–3 lei, 2–4 lai, leie, 3 læi(ȝ)e, leai, leiȝe, Ormin laȝȝ, 3–6 laie, 4 leȝ, leye, 4–5 leyȝe, leghe, 4–6 Sc. la, 4–7 ley, (5 lye, leȝe), 5–6 laye, 3– lay. 2nd pers. 1 lǽᵹe, 3 læiȝe, 3–4 lay, lai, etc.; 7 laist, 9 lay'st. pl. 1 lǽᵹon, láᵹon, Northumb. léᵹon, 3–4 leien, laien, leiȝen, etc.; also 3– uninflected. β(weak) 6–7 dial., 8–9 arch. ligged, 6 Sc. liggit, 9 lied, dial. lig'd.
| α Beowulf 1532 (Gr.) Hit on eorðan læᵹ. c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. ix. 36 Leᵹon suæ scip næfdon hiorde. 11.. O.E. Chron. an. 1052 (Cotton MS.) Þætte on Sandwic læiᵹ. c 1160 Hatton Gosp. Mark ii. 4 Þæt bed þe se lame on laiȝ. c 1200 Ormin 3692 He laȝȝ..i cribbe. c 1205 Lay. 5030 Þa wombe þe þu læie inne swa longe. Ibid. 9766 Vaspasien mid his monnen læiȝe [c 1275 lay] at Exchæstre. c 1220 Bestiary 42 In a ston stille he lai til it kam ðe dridde dai. a 1275 Passion Lord 195 in O.E. Misc. 42 Þe Gywes vp asturte þat leyen in þe grunde. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 3830 Boþe stede & king leye sone atte grounde. a 1300 Cursor M. 10571 Þar efterson þai samen lai. Ibid. 23500 Quat þou did and in credel lai [other texts lay]. 13.. Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 2006 Þe leude lystened ful wel, þat leȝ in his bedde. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. A. 214 Her fax..On schylderez þat leghe. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) V. 107 His body lay in þe streete..unburied. c 1400 Destr. Troy 8243 The ladies o lofte leghen to waite. c 1420 Chron. Vilod. 4459 (Horstm.) He lye euery-presonede stylle in þat castelle. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VI, 173 b, His seignorie and power laie in those partes. 1560 J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 57 b, His Purse..laye upon his bed. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. ix. 86 To ly hidd as he la. 1671 Milton P.R. i. 247 The Manger where thou lais't. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones xviii. vi, I lay Seven years in Winchester jail. 1847 L. Hunt Jar Honey x. (1848) 131 Sicily lay at our feet. |
| β 1560 Rolland Crt. Venus i. 56 Behind the Bus..I liggit law. a 1641 Bp. R. Montagu Acts & Mon. (1642) 456 Their Cels and Commoratories where they ligged. 1748 Thomson Cast. Indol. 595 Here whilom ligg'd th' Esopus of the age. 1813 T. Busby tr. Lucretius I. Dissert. 14 Bright eminences and fertile vallies lied in his way. Ibid. vi. Comm. 25 Those who, by death or desertion, were deprived of their friends and domestics, lied unburied in their houses. 1879 E. Arnold Lt. Asia iii. 2 In which calm home of happy life and love Ligged our Lord Buddha. |
4. subj. pres. lie. Forms: 1 licge, 3–4 ligge, 4 lyg, ligg, 6 lig, 6–7 ly(e, 5– lie.
| c 1000 Laws of Wihtræd c. 25 (Schmid) Licge butan wyr⁓ᵹelde. a 1225 Ancr. R. 424 Nenne mon ne leten heo in..ne ne ligge ute. 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 3507 If any fal in dedly syn Ryse he up, and ligg noght lang þar-in. c 1374 Chaucer Troylus v. 411 If þow þus ligge a day or two or þre. c 1375 Lay Folks Mass Bk. (MS. B.) 593 Wheþer we ryde, or be goande, lyg, or sitt. c 1449 Pecock Repr. ii. xx. 272 That he lie with the lord in oon bed. 1508 Dunbar Tua mariit wemen 500 That he be lost or with me lig. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 31 How lang saevir the frost ly. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. ii. vii. 61 If my forme lye there. |
5. subj. pa. lay (leɪ). Forms: 1 lǽᵹe, (pl. lǽᵹen), 3 leie, læie, 3–4 leye, 4 laye, 5 leyȝe, 7 ley (etc., as in pa. ind.), 5– lay.
| c 893 K. ælfred Oros. i. i. §14 He sæde þæt he..wolde fandian hu longe þæt land norþryhte læᵹe. a 1175 Lamb. Hom. 33 Þah þu leie in ane prisune. c 1205 Lay. 22254 Þat his folc gode aswunden ne læie þere [c 1275 leye]. c 1374 Chaucer Troylus iv. 1532 (1560) If þis were wist my lif lay [v.r. leye] in balaunce. c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 16 It were good þat he lay [Add. MS. leyȝe] & traueilide wiþ hise hondis. 1596 Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, v. ii. 48 O, would the quarrell lay vpon our heads. 1684 T. Burnet Theory Earth i. 195 If the ballast ley more at one end, it would dip towards that pole. |
6. imp. lie (laɪ). Forms: sing. 1 liᵹ(e, 3 liȝ(e, 3–5 li, ly, 5–9 north. lig, ligg, 6–8 lye, 3– lie. pl. 4 liggeth; 4– lie.
| c 1000 Sax. Leechd. II. 118 Liᵹe on þa sidan þe [etc.]. c 1205 Lay. 18097 Passent liȝ [c 1275 ly] nu þer. Ibid. 28724 Liȝe þer. a 1225 Ancr. R. 290 Ne lie þu nout stille. a 1275 Death 137 in O.E. Misc. 176 Li [v.r. ly] awariede bali þat neauer þu ne arise. c 1374 Chaucer Troylus ii. 904 (953) Li stil and lat me slepe. Ibid. iii. 899 (948) Liggeth stille and taketh hym right here. c 1460 Towneley Myst. ii. 326 Lig down ther and take thi rest. c 1650 Christopher White iv. in Child Ballads II. 439 Come, sweet wench, and ligg thy loue on mee. 1680 Otway Orphan i. iv. 276 Lye still! my Heart. |
7. pres. pple. lying (ˈlaɪɪŋ). Forms: 1 licgende, Northumb. lic(c)end, 2–3 liggend, 4 liynge, lyng, liging, ligand(e, -onde, liende, lyende, liggonde, -ande, lyggynde, 4–5 ligging, -yng(e, 5 liggeng, lieng, lyynge, leing, liend, 4–6 lyeng(e, liand(e, lyand(e, 5 lyond, lyggande, 5–6 lyggyng(e, -ing(e, lyinge, 6 liyng, 7 lyeing, 5– lying, 9 ligging dial.
| c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. John v. 6 Ðionne miððy ᵹesæh se hælend licgende [Rushw. licende]. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 183 Þus doð þe libbende frend to-ȝenes þe liggende. a 1300 Cursor M. 6130 (Cott.) For was na hus in al þat land Þat þar ne was ded man ligand [other texts liggande, ligond]. c 1315 Shoreham 122 Lyggynde ine hare forage. c 1325 Song Mercy 57 in E.E.P. (1862) 120 In harde prisoun lyng. c 1375 Cursor M. 3384 (Fairf.) Þe landes lyand towarde þe est. 1382 Wyclif Matt. viii. 14 He say his wyues moder liggynge [v.r. lyende, 1388 liggynge]. c 1400 Destr. Troy 12666 Þe buernes..Left hym þer lyond. 1436 Rolls of Parlt. IV. 498/1 As Felons..in awayte lyggyng. c 1440 Generydes 3027 In the feld he left hym liggeng. c 1450 Holland Howlat 227 Lyand in lichory, laith, vnloveable. 1470–85 Malory Arthur xviii. xx, The fayrest corps lyenge in a ryche bedde. 1496 Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 175 The Soueraigne leing in the dokke. 1533 Gau Richt Vay 64 Liand in his bed. 1553 Brende Q. Curtius F viij, The fore front alwayes defended the rest of the work lying behinde. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 5 The vthir syd lyeng toward Spane. Ibid. 9 The mid parte lyeing betuene that and Cheuott hillis. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. v. I. 597 A merchantman lying at the quay took fire. 1864 Tennyson North. Farmer i. i, Wheer 'asta beän saw long and meä liggin' 'ere aloän? |
8. pa. pple. lain (leɪn). Forms: α(strong) 1 (ᵹe)leᵹen, 3 i-læien, i-leien, i-leye, i-lei, 3–4 y-leye(n, lei(e)n, 4 y-leine, y-leie, y-lay, y-leighe, yleiȝe, y-lie, leye(n, leie, leiȝen, ligen, lygyn, lin(e, Sc. lyin, 4–5 leyn(e, liggen, 4–6 lyn, 4–7 layn(e, laine, lyne, 4–8 layen, lyen, lien (also 9 arch.), 5 y-ly, lye, ? loy(e)n, 6 lyene, 7 li'n, lay, 7– lain. β(weak) 6 Sc. liggit, 7 lied, 9 dial. lig'd.
| α c 893 K. ælfred Oros. v. xiii. §3 Þa heo þæron ᵹeleᵹen wæs. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 7 Longe we habben lein on ure fule synnes. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 1711 He adde ileye sik. a 1300 Cursor M. 10084 Vte o prisun strang þat þai had ligen [other texts liggen, leyn, leyne] in sua lang. Ibid. 11297 Efter þat sco suld ha lin [other texts lyne, lien, lyn] Fourti dais in hir gisin. c 1320 Sir Beues 2001 (MS. A.) In is prisoun.. Ichaue leie þis seuen ȝare. c 1325 Lai le Freine 98 Tvay men han y-ly me by. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 4188 (Kölbing) Bi hir he wald haue yleiȝe. 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 3162 Som..Þat..has..lang lygyn in þair syn. 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. v. 259 He haþ leiȝen [C. vii. 330 leye] bi latro, lucifers brother. Ibid. xi. 276 Þat hadde leyn [B. x. 419 yleine] with lucifer manye longe ȝeris. c 1380 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 286 Þei han so longe leyen in so gret cursinge. c 1440 J. Capgrave Life St. Kath. iv. 2090 It were as good thei had loyn in bedde. a 1450 Le Morte Arth. 525 How þat he had woundyd bene, And seke he had lye fulle sore. c 1450 Merlin 86 How a man hadde lyen with her in semblaunce of the Duke. 1463 Bury Wills (Camden) 23 Y⊇ bedde that she hath loyen in. c 1560 R. Morice in Lett. Lit. Men (Camden) 25, I wolde yt hadd byn my fortune to have lyn in London. a 1586 Sidney Arcadia ii. (1590) 101 b, Those flames which had so long layn deade in me. 1611 Bible John xx. 12 Where the body of Iesus had layen. 1624 Heywood Gunaik. ii. 67 Oft in one shade the hare and hound hath lyne. 1650 Baxter Saints' R. iii. vi. §24 (1651) 125 What if you had lien in Hell but one year? 1675 Earl of Essex Lett. (1770) 207 An order of Council which had several months lay by me. 1676 Hobbes Iliad (1677) 380, I..rolling on the soiled grass have li'n Perpetually, and..wept. 1681 T. Flatman Heraclitus Ridens No. 25 (1713) I. 161 If my Life had lain never so much at stake. 1703 T. N. City & C. Purch. 43 Bricks..had layen in the Place to dry. 1722 De Foe Plague (1756) 227 We..found it had lyen much longer conceal'd. 1788 Beattie Burns' Wks. II. 141 Lang had she lien wi' buffe and flegs. 1871 G. Macdonald Bk. Sonnets in Wks. Fancy & Imag. II. 176 At thy holy feet I should have lien. 1871 Smiles Charac. iii. (1876) 69, I have lain awake all night. |
| β 1500–20 Dunbar Poems lv. 28, I saw cowclinkis..Had better liggit in the stockis. 1670 Barrow in Rigaud Corr. Sci. Men (1841) II. 75 It hath lied by me without looking on for many years. 1832 Specim. Yorksh. Dial. 11 Had she lig'd theer lang? |
B. Signification and uses. I. In senses expressive of bodily posture, and developments of these.
1. a. intr. Of persons or animals: To be in a prostrate or recumbent position. Formerly also with refl. pronoun.
| c 1000 ælfric Hom. I. 246 Se witeᵹa læᵹ and slep. Ibid. 328 Þa læᵹ sum wædla æt his ᵹeate, and his nama wæs Lazarus. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 81 Þes oðer Mon..luueð his sunnen alse deð þet fette swin þet fule fen to liggen in. a 1300 Cursor M. 690 Bi þe dere þat now es wild, Als lambe him lai þe leon mild. c 1300 Havelok 475 Þe children..Leyen and sprauleden in þe blod. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 55 ‘A ha!’ said þe erle, ‘had þat schank ne bien, þou had liggen þer stille, þe risen suld non haf sene.’ 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. Prol. 9 As I lay and leonede and lokede on þe watres. 1382 Wyclif Gen. xxix. 2 He sawȝ a pit in the feeld and thre flockis of sheep liggynge bisidis it. c 1440 Gesta Rom. ii. 6 (Harl. MS.) To ligge ny þe fire. 1551 Robinson More's Utop. ii. (1895) 295 When they haue lien a little space on the grounde, the priest giueth them a signe for to ryse. 1607 Dekker Knt.'s Conjur. (1842) p. vi, They that haue once or twice lyen vpon the rack of publicke censure. 1809 Med. Jrnl. XXI. 385 The woman having lain during the labour upon her left side. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. lxxxix. 23 To hear him, as he lay and read The Tuscan poets on the lawn. |
b. with predicative complement expressing condition; e.g. to lie asleep, sick, dead, blind, in a fever. † Also with inf. (e.g. to lie to die).
| c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Matt. viii. 6 Min cnapa lið on minum huse lama. 1154 O.E. Chron. an. 1135 (Laud MS.) He lai an slep in scip. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 81 And efre lei þes wreche for-wunden. a 1225 Leg. Kath. 2286 Nalde nawt godd leoten his martirs licomes liggen to forleosen. a 1340 Hampole Psalter Cant. 496 A man þat liggys in a strayte fifere. a 1425 Cursor M. 14172 (Trin.) He liþ to deȝe þat lele & trewe. c 1440 Gesta Rom. lxi. 253 (Harl. MS.) The suster of the Emperoure, þat now lithe in childebed. 1470–85 Malory Arthur xvii. xviii. 715 And anon the kynge sawe hym the whiche had leyne blynd of long tyme. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 72 b, And so sayd saynt Laurence whan he laye rostynge on the yren crate. 1530 Palsgr. 610/1, I lye at the poynte of dethe. 1560 J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 24 b, For the duke of Saxonie lay sicke at Collen. 1564 Grindal Funeral Serm. Ferdinand A iv b, Aeschilus the Poete lieng on slepe bare headed nere the sea. 1669 Pepys Let. 2 Nov. in Diary (1879) VI. 112 My wife..hath layn under a fever so severe, as [etc.]. 1711 Swift Jrnl. to Stella 31 Aug., Ophy Butler's wife there lies very ill of an ague. 1870 E. Peacock Ralf Skirl. III. 81 For hours she lay awake. 1887 E. Berdoe St. Bernard 68 The..room where she lay a cripple for so many years. |
† c. Used simply = to ‘lie sick’, keep one's bed.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 8942 War his sekenes neuer sa strang, Ne had he lin neuer sua lang. 1470–85 Malory Arthur ii. xiii. 91 They..told hym how her lady was seke & had layne many yeres. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. x. 408 Quhen bot schort he had lyne the x of July he departed this lyfe. |
d. Expressing the posture of a dead body: To be extended on a bier or the like; to be buried (in a specified place). to lie in state: see state. † In OE. and early ME. also, To be dead.
| Beowulf 2745 (Gr.) Nu se wyrm liᵹeð. a 1000 O.E. Chron. an. 901 (Parker MS.) æðelwald..sæde þæt he wolde oðer oððe þær libban oððe þær licgan. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 35 Ga to þine feder burinesse oðer þer eni of þine cunne lið in. c 1205 Lay. 5869 We eow wulleð bi-foren libben oðer liggen. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 3892 Ðor he [Aaron] lið doluen on ðat wold. a 1300 Cursor M. 5340 Þar lijs our heldres, þar sal i li. c 1470 Harding Chron. clxxix. ii, Thyrty thousande with theim liggand ly. 1501 Bury Wills (Camden) 83 The holy place where the blyssyd and holy Apostyll Seynt Jamys lyth. 1695 Sibbald Autobiog. (1834) 126 He was buried at Edinburgh in the Gray Frier churchyard, where our other relations lye. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 164 ¶12 Here lie the Bodies of Father Francis and Sister Constance. 1798 Wordsw. We are seven 21 Two of us in the church⁓yard lie, My sister and my brother. |
e. To be in one's bed for the purpose of sleeping or resting. Also (now rarely) with qualifying word or phrase, e.g. to lie soft(ly.
| c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 102/37 Þare heo leien In heore beden. 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. vii. 14 The Neodi and the Nakede nym ȝeeme hou thei liggen. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xvi. (Magdalene) 312 Þu in chuchis & silkine clathis lyis ful softe. c 1386 Chaucer Sir Thopas 200 He nolde slepen in noon hous But liggen in his hoode. c 1440 Gesta Rom. lxiii. 274 (Harl. MS.) Certenly he desirith wele to ete, swetly to drinke, softely to ligge. 1579 Spenser Sheph. Cal. May 125 Tho gan shepheards swaines to looke aloft, And leave to live hard, and learne to ligge soft. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. (1839) 8 Hence it is that lying cold breedeth dreams of fear. 1710 S. Centlivre Man's Bewitched v. 68 Leave the London Dames..To lig in their Beds till Noon. 1742 Chesterfield Lett. (1792) I. xc. 250 The people are extremely rude and barbarous, living chiefly upon raw flesh, and lying generally upon the ground, or at best in tents. 1850 Thackeray Pendennis ix, You must lie on the bed which you have made for yourself. |
f. Hence to lie with (or † lie by): to have sexual intercourse with. Somewhat arch.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 27943 Incest, þat es for to lij Bi þat þi sibman has line bi. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 852 (Kölbing) Þis maiden..feled al so bi her þi, Þat sche was yleyen bi. c 1400 Mandeville (1839) xxvii. 276 He wille not lyȝe with his Wyfes but 4 sithes in the Ȝeer. 1470–85 Malory Arthur v. xii, That none of his lyege men shold defoule ne lygge by no lady. 1504 Plumpton Corr. (Camden) p. lxiv, That they shuld not ligg togedder till she came to the age of xvi yeres. 1533 Gau Richt Vay 16 Thay that lysz wit thair kine and bluid. 1611 Bible Jer. iii. 2 Lift vp thine eyes vnto the high places, and see where thou hast not bene lien with. a 1652 Brome Mad Couple i. i. Wks. 1873 I. 16 You have unlawfully lyen with some woman. 1711 Steele Spect. No. 51 ¶7 Tho' he betrays the Honour and Bed of his Neighbour and Friend, and lies with half the Women in the Play. 1750 G. Jeffreys in Duncombe's Letters (1773) II. 250 He was only beforehand with his double⁓dealing brother in lying with a prostitute. |
2. To assume a recumbent or prostrate position. Chiefly in lie down, lie back, etc., for which see branch IV. † Also with refl. pronoun. † Also, to lean or hang over (a wall).
| a 1300 Cursor M. 20487 To hir bedd son scho ȝod & lay Abutte þe time al of midday. c 1320 Sir Tristr. 70 Þat maidens miȝt him se And ouer þe walles to lye. c 1435 Torr. Portugal 1166 Ladyes lay over and beheld. c 1440 Gesta Rom. xix. 67 (Harl. MS.) And þerfore let vs make him, þat settith such a dyet in vs, to rise with vs, and lig with vs. 1484 Caxton Fables of Alfonce v, We shalle go and lye vs for to slepe. 1530 Palsgr. 610/1, I lye me to slepe, je me mets a dormir. a 1828 Leesome Brand xxxiii. in Child Ballads I. 183 His mother lay ower her castle wa, And she beheld baith dale and down. 1832 Tennyson Miller's Dau. 111 From off the wold I came, and lay Upon the freshly-flower'd slope. |
3. a. To be or remain in a specified position of subjection, helplessness, misery, degradation, or captivity; to be kept in prison; to continue in sin, etc. † Also simply = ‘to lie in prison’; sometimes idiomatically to lie by it. to lie by the heels (arch.): see heel n.1 19. to lie open (to): see open.
| c 893 K. ælfred Oros. v. i, On carcernum læᵹon. c 1200 Vices & Virtues (1888) 37 Ȝif he..lið on sume heaued-senne. c 1300 Havelok 1374 He haueth me do..ofte in sorwe and pine ligge. c 1350 Will. Palerne 4307 Alle oþer of þe lordes of þat lond þat þere leie in hold. c 1380 Wyclif Serm. (Sel. Wks.) I. 39 A long custom to ligge in synne. 1470–85 Malory Arthur iv. vii, We ben here xx knyghtes prysoners..& some of vs haue layne here seuen yere. 1483 Caxton Gold. Leg. 239 b/1 And yet he entended to be his pledge and to lye for him, his charite was so grete. 1530 Palsgr. 610/1, I lye bounde in chaynes. 1567 Gude & Godlie Ball. (S.T.S.) 133 Sa lang in Sin as thow dois ly. 1586 Earl of Leicester Corr. (Camden) 277 The auditour also..is worthy to lye by the heeles. 1618 E. Elton Rom. vii. (1622) 90 Any particular sinne wherein thou hast liued and lyen. 1631 Massinger Emperor East iii. i, To free all such as lie for debt. 1644 Quarles Barnabas & B. 16, I must be paid, or he lie by it, until I have my utmost farthing or his bones. a 1670 Hacket Abp. Williams ii. (1692) 138 Lincoln was like to lye by it, and to be shut out of mercy by an irreversible decree. 1692 R. L'Estrange Fables, Life æsop (1708) 7 From Lying at the Mercy of Fire, Water, and a Wicked Woman, Good Lord deliver us. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. iv. I. 482 The defendant..was lying in prison as a debtor. 1882 Stevenson Fam. Stud. 265 His brother still lay by the heels for an unpatriotic treaty with England. |
b. to lie under: to be subject to (some disadvantage or obligation).
| 1599 Shakes. Much Ado iv. i. 171 If this sweet Ladie lye not guiltlesse heere, Vnder some biting error. 1682 Count Königsmark in Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) I. 336 The misfortune which I lay under. 1701 W. Wotton Hist. Rome vi. 105 He lay under a sort of a Vow. 1710 Addison Whig Exam. No. 4 ¶9 Any one who reads this letter will lye under the same delusion. 1748 Anson's Voy. ii. x. 236 Manila..lies under some disadvantage, from the difficulty there is in getting to sea to the eastward. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. vii. II. 202 In spite of all the restraints under which the press lay. 1866 Duke of Argyll Reign Law vii. (1871) 331 The bondage under which all Science lies to fact. |
4. a. To remain in a state of inactivity or concealment (not necessarily prone or reclining). Chiefly with complementary adj. or pa. pple. (For to lie close, low, perdu, etc., see those adjs.)
Cf. sense 8, where the subj. is a thing.
| c 1374 Chaucer Boeth. ii. Metr. vii. 47 (Camb. MS.) Liggeth thanne stille al owtrely vnknowable. 1538 Starkey England ii. i. 174 By the reson wherof our owne marynerys oft-tymys lye idul. 1604 E. G[rimstone] tr. D'Acosta's Hist. Indies i. xvii. 57 That these nations of the Indies, which have lyen so long hidden, should bee knowne and discovered. 1679 Dryden Troilus & Cr. iii. i, We'll none of him: but let him like an Engine Not portable, lye lagg of all the Camp. 1745 in Col. Rec. Pennsylv. V. 12 We have in this part of the country lain still, both the last Summer and this. 1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1780), Tout le monde bas,..the order to the ship's crew to lie snug upon deck or below. 1838 Dickens O. Twist xlviii, He..resolved to lie concealed within a short distance of the metropolis. Ibid. l, Do you mean to sell me, or to let me lie here till this hunt is over? 1885 U. S. Grant Mem. I. xx. 269 They were growing impatient at lying idle so long, almost in hearing of the guns of the enemy. |
b. to lie in ambush, in wait, † in await (see the ns.). † to lie for = to lie in wait for. to lie at catch or lie upon the catch (? arch. or dial.): to set oneself to entrap a person, to be captious. (For to lie at lurch, at ward, on one's guard, see the ns.)
| 1605 T. Ryves Vicar's Plea (1620) 141 That hee seeme not to lie at catch for an aduantage against his inferiour fellow minister. 1611 Cotgr., Aguetté, dogged; watched, waited; lien for. 1655 Fuller Ch. Hist. iii. i. §11 Lie at catch, and wait advantages one against another. 1671 Shadwell Humourists iii. 38 Dryb... That's stole out of a Play. Craz. What then, that's lawful; 'tis a shifting age for wit, and every body lies upon the Catch. a 1715 Burnet Own Time (1724) I. 307 The Dutch had a rich fleet coming from Smyrna..Holmes was ordered to lye for them..with eight men of war. 1802–12 Bentham Ration. Judic. Evid. (1827) I. 588 note, Since he lay upon the watch and catch, only to see what the plaintiff proved. 1879 Spurgeon Serm. XXV. 329 He only asks the question because it ought to be asked, and does not lie upon the catch. |
c. Shooting. Of game-birds: To remain crouching upon the ground. (Also to lie dead.) to lie to the dogs, to the gun: to permit the approach of a dog or the sportsman without ‘rising’.
| 1797 Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XVII. 441/1 After the birds have been sprung many times, they lie so dead that they will suffer him [the sportsman] almost to tread upon them before they will rise. Ibid. 441/2 Partridges lie much better to dogs that wind them, than to those that follow them by the track. Ibid. 443/1 When..the sportsman perceives the birds running with their heads erect, he must run after them..for he may be pretty certain they will not lie well that day. 1848 Zoologist VI. 1964 The Spanish snipe would much less frequently ‘lie’ to the gun. 1886 Badm. Libr., Shooting 6 In Scotland grouse are usually walked up with dogs. The birds in that country lie well... If grouse lie well to dogs..they give easy marks to the gunner. |
d. to lie on or upon one's arms, oars, sculls, to lie upon wing: see the ns.
5. a. To dwell or sojourn; esp. to sleep or pass the night (in a place), to lodge temporarily. Now rare or arch.
| c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 312 At Sant Katerine hous þe erle Marschalle lay. c 1350 Will. Palerne 166 Þe king edwardes newe at glouseter þat ligges. 1415 Sir T. Grey in 43 Deputy Keeper's Rep. 584 And yat neghte I lay at Kengston. 1547 Boorde Introd. Knowl. xvii. (1870) 167 Prage, wher the king of Boeme doth ly much whan he is in the countre. 1632 Lithgow Trav. iv. 141 [He] kept a better house, than any Ambassadour did, that euer lay at Constantinople. 1695 Congreve Love for L. i. xi, I think your father lies at Foresight's. 1721 Lond. Gaz. No. 5980/3 The Exeter Carrier has lain at the Saracen's Head Inn..for many Years past. 1766 Goldsm. Vic. W. vi. (Globe) 12 He refused, as he was to lie that night at a neighbour's. 1776 H. Walpole Let. to Mason 16 Apr., She lay at home..or according to the chaste modern phrase, slept there. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. viii. II. 295 He lay that night at the deanery. |
b. spec. of a host or army (or its leader): To be encamped, to have or take up a position in a field. † to lie in leaguer: see leaguer.
| c 1205 Lay. 650 He..leai þer abuten & abat his balesiðes. c 1450 Merlin 239 The saisnes..laye that nyght stille armed. 1470–85 Malory Arthur ii. vi, For the kyng Ryons lyeth at a syege atte castel Tarabil. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon lxi. 213 Y⊇ admyrall that lay at sege before y⊇ castell. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 259 The kyng laie before Bullein, and was like to have conquered the same. 1644 Vicars God in Mount 146 Their Forces which had lyen so long before Sherborne. a 1671 Ld. Fairfax Mem. (1699) 28 At Wakefield, six miles off, lay three thousand of the enemy. 1724 De Foe Mem. Cavalier (1840) 68 The army lay under their arms all night. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. iii. I. 294 Near the capital lay also the corps which is now designated as the first regiment of dragoons. |
† c. To live under specified circumstances or engaged in some specified occupation. (With at, about.) Obs.
| 1546 Langley Pol. Verg. De Invent. viii. iii. 146 b, It cost hym his life in Areciæ, where he laye at Surgery for the healyng of his legge. 1599 Hakluyt Voy. II. i. 176 An Englishman called Thomas Williams..lieth about trade of merchandize in the streete called The Soca of the Iewes. 1623 Massinger Bondman ii. i, To lie at rack and manger. 1694 Motteux Rabelais v. vii. (1737) 27 There he lay at Rack and Manger. 1719 De Foe Crusoe ii. vi, The men lying..at victuals and wages upon the owners' account. |
† d. To be quartered on. Obs.
| 1669 Ormonde MSS. in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 101 Five of the horsemen are lying on the tenants of your petitioner. |
6. In various idiomatic uses (with preps., etc.), expressive of steady and continuous action. (Cf. L. incumbere operi.) † a. to lie at, lie upon: to importune, urge. Obs.
| 1535 Coverdale 1 Macc. xi. 40 He..laye sore vpon him, to delyuer him this yonge Antiochus. 1566 Gascoigne Supposes i. i. Poems 1869 I. 204 The olde dotarde, he that so instantly dothe lye vpon my father for me [i.e. as a suitor for her hand]. 1568 MS. Depos. Canterbury Cath. Libr. Bk. 16. 24 Sept., Shee hath layne at me a good while to have your good will in maryage with her. 1600 Holland Livy i. 32 Dame Tullia lay ever upon him, & pricked forward his distempered & troubled mind. 1619 W. Whately God's Husb. ii. (1622) 114 To lie at him with vncessant and vehement sollicitations to commit such and such foule deeds. 1673 Janway Heaven on E. (1847) 155 Shall they lie at you day and night, to give your consent,..and are you still unwilling? a 1688 W. Clagett 17 Serm. (1699) 358 The judge in the parable granted the widow's suit merely because she lay upon him, and was troublesome to him. 1737 Whiston Josephus, Hist. iii. viii. §3 Nicanor lay hard at Josephus to comply. |
† b. to lie heavy upon: to oppress, harass. (Cf. 7 c.) Obs.
| c 1586 C'tess Pembroke Ps. cxlvi. iii, He orphans doth support: But heavy lies upon the godlesse sort. 1611 Bible 1 Esdras v. 72 The heathen of the land lying heauy vpon the inhabitants of Iudea. 1676 Hobbes Iliad (1677) 181 This said, the Lycians heavier than before (To please their prince) upon the Argives lay. |
c. to lie † at, lie to: to apply oneself vigorously and steadily to.
| 1583 T. Stocker Civ. Warres Lowe C. iii. 87 b, Citizens, Souldiers, Souldiers Wiues, and Pages, laye at it daye and night: insomuch that it was quickly dispatcht. 1656 Baxter Reformed Pastor 58 This is the work that we should lie at with them night and day. 1833 L. Ritchie Wand. by Loire 160 The men..lay desperately to their oars, and the skiff sprang through the water. 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. II. xi. 78 No mercenary mock-workers, but real ones that lie freely to it. |
† d. with gerund: To keep on or continue doing something. Obs. rare.
| 1692 R. L'Estrange Fables xi. (1708) 13 Why will you lie Pining and Pinching your self in such a Lonesome, Starving Course of Life? Ibid. lxii. 77 The Generality of Mankind lye Pecking at One Another, till One by One they are all Torn to Pieces. 1692 ― Josephus iv. (1733) 892 Here's an obscure, mean Wretch, that has the Face to lie tutoring me upon a Subject he knows nothing at all of himself. |
II. Said of things, material or immaterial.
7. a. Of material things: To be placed or set horizontally or lengthwise or at rest on the ground or other surface.
| c 1000 Ags. Gosp. John xx. 5 He ᵹeseah þa linwæda licᵹan. c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 9/296 Þat treo ne scholde nouȝt ligge þere. a 1300 Cursor M. 1129 His blod on erth sced lijs. 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. v. 65 As a leek þat hedde I-leiȝen longe In þe sonne. c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) iii. 9 Apon þat body lay a grete plate of gold. c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 6603 Alle þe clathes lay him aboute. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII 262 b, On all the bankes by the water side, laie peces of ordinaunce whiche shot of. 1590 Greene Mourn. Garm. (1616) 12 A bottle full of Country whigge, By the Shepheards side did ligge. 1747 Wesley Prim. Physic (1762) 75 Take as much as lies on a shilling of Calcin'd Eggshells. 1754 Chatham Lett. Nephew vi. 42, I hear with great pleasure, that Jocke lay before you, when you writ last to me. 1776–96 Withering Brit. Plants (ed. 3) II. 436 Corn fields and sandy places, especially where water has lain. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. iii. I. 345 The ruins of an old fort were to be seen lying among the pebbles and seaweed on the beach. |
b. To be deposited, remain permanently in a specified place.
| c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) ii. 6 Þe coroune lyes in a vessell of cristall. 1459 Test. Ebor. (Surtees) II. 227 A Sawter..and an Hympner..lyggynge in his saide closet. 1463 Bury Wills (Camden) 22 The gardeyn assigned..for woode to lye in. 1535 Coverdale Judith xii. 1 Then commaunded he her to go in, where his treasure laye. 1609 Skene Reg. Maj. 1 b, Al the grains and cornes lyand in bings. 1804 Europ. Mag. XLV. 65/1 A Petition from J. Macleod..was ordered to lie on the table. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. iii. I. 393 An esquire passed among his neighbours for a great scholar, if Hudibras and Baker's Chronicle [etc.]..lay in his hall window among the fishing rods and fowling pieces. 1891 Law Times XCI. 411/2 Jeune, J. made the order, but directed that it should lie in the office for a week. |
c. Of a building, etc.: To be overthrown or fallen; with complement, as to lie in ruins, lie in the dust. to lie heavy: to be a heavy load upon (lit. and fig.: see heavy a.). Of food, etc., to lie heavy, lie cold, etc. († formerly, simply to lie) lie on the stomach: to be felt as oppressive.
| c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 544 (Kölbing) Foundement & werk þai founde Ligge vp so & doun op þe grounde. a 1592 H. Smith God's Arrow agst. Atheists v. (1593) K 3 b, If it bee not builded vpon a good foundation..the whole building is like to lie in the dust. 1711 Swift Jrnl. to Stella 5 Sept., I ate sturgeon, and it lies on my stomach. c 1726 [see heavy 1 b]. 1884 W. C. Smith Kildrostan 43 One sidewall long had in ruins lain. 1897 Allbutt's Syst. Med. III. 704 Delicate persons, in whom the cold water tends to lie heavy on the stomach. |
8. To remain unworked, unused, untouched, or undiscovered. Often with complement, as to lie barren, lie hid, lie waste (see also fallow a.2, lea a.); also in phr. to lie on one's hands, to lie at a stand.
(Cf. sense 4, where the subj. is a person or a personification.)
| a 1300 Cursor M. 6841 Your land yee sal sau seuen [sic] yeir... Þe seuend ye sal it lat lij still. 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. vi. 165 Worth neuere plente amonge þe poeple þer-while my plow liggeth. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 173 b, Wherfore all brode Clothes, Kerseis, and Cottons, laye on their handes. 1560 J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 150 b, Through our mens wrytinges, sondrye articles are called agayne to lyght, whiche laye before hidde in darkenes. c 1590 Marlowe Faustus (1604) D 3 b, Letts goe and make cleane our bootes which lie foule vpon our handes. 1622 in Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) I. 211 This hath made matters to lie a little at a stand. 1628 Digby Voyage Medit. (1868) 68 To make them buy their currantes (which lay vpon their handes). 1641 Hinde J. Bruen To Rdr. 7 This worke hath lyen above twice five [years]. 1653 Holcroft Procopius iii. 88 Turris, an ancient City..which had been sack'd by Barbarians, and layen long wast. 1671 J. Flavel Fount. of Life i. 3 'Tis pity that anything in Christ should ly hid from his People. 1879 Gladstone Glean. I. i. 2 Rarely within the living memory has so much of skill lain barren. |
† 9. Of the wind, the tongue: To be or become still, be at rest, subside. Obs.
| a 1000 Phœnix 182 Ðonne wind liᵹeð weder bið fæᵹer. 1600 Holland Livy xxv. xxvii. 569 When the East wind began to lie, which for certeine daies had blustred and raged. 1611 Cotgr., Languarde,..a wench whose tongue neuer lyes. 1647 Trapp Comm. 1 Thess. v. 3 When the winde lies, the great rain fals. 1689 Prior Ep. to F. Shephard 110 Fancies flow in, and Muse flies high; So God knows when my Clack will lye. |
10. a. To be situated (in space), to have a (specified) position. Often with adj. (or quasi-adv.) complement.
| c 1121 O.E. Chron. an. 656 (Laud MS.) Ealle þa landes þa þær abuton liggeð. a 1300 Cursor M. 2469 Þe land o gommor þar-bi lijs. 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. x. 316 Ac þei leten hem as lordes her londe lith so brode. c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 161 In þe holownes þat is aboue liggiþ þe herte & þe lungis. 1455 Rolls of Parlt. V. 313/1, vii acres of Mede, liggyng in the Mede beside the Brigge of Chartesey. 1577 Hanmer Anc. Eccl. Hist. (1619) 508 The citie, which lay wonderfull commodious for the Romanes. 1597 Bacon Coulers Good & Evill v. Ess. (Arb.) 144 Men whose liuing lieth together in one Shire. 1605 Shakes. Lear iii. iv. 21 O that way madnesse lies, let me shun that. 1648 Hamilton Papers (Camden) 184, I belieue the sceane of disorder may lye heere. 1657 R. Ligon Barbadoes (1673) 3 So much is the eye deceived in Land which lies high. 1695 Woodward Nat. Hist. Earth ii. (1723) 77 Those Strata that ly deepest. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 170 ¶13 It is a Misfortune for a Woman to be born between the Tropicks; for there lie the hottest Regions of Jealousy. 1793 Smeaton Edystone L. §204 A small sea-port of Somersetshire, lying upon the Bristol Channel. 1818 Cruise Digest (ed. 2) V. 606 Within the manor of Collingham, where the lands lay. 1883 Eng. Illustr. Mag. Nov. 72/1 The wild beauty of Wicken Fen is in striking contrast with the cultivated land lying around it. |
b. To be spread out or extended to the view.
| 1764 Goldsm. Trav. 100 But let us try these truths with closer eyes, And trace them through the prospect as it lies. 1792 Gentl. Mag. 9/2 A spacious field now lies before the Christian world for the introduction of a better policy. 1836 J. H. Newman Par. Serm. (1837) III. x. 141 It is remarkable that such difficulties as these should lie on the face of Scripture. 1860 Pusey Min. Proph. 181 Samaria..unfenced and unconcealed by walls, lay open, unsheltered in every part from the gaze of the besiegers. 1879 S. C. Bartlett Egypt to Pal. v. 99 We could not for a moment expect such indications to lie upon the surface. 1890 J. Payn Burnt Million II. xxx. 248 What a future seemed to lie before him! |
c. Of a road, way, journey, etc.: To extend, have a (specified) direction.
| c 1000 ælfric Gen. xxxv. 19 On þam weᵹe, þe lið to Euphfrate. 1596 Shakes. Tam. Shr. iii. ii. 212 There lies your way. 1605 ― Lear iii. iv. 10 If thy flight lay toward the roaring Sea. 1648 Gage West Ind. 114, I found it not so hard to overcome, as I had conceited, the way lying with windings. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. x. II. 567 The counties through which the road to London lay. 1851 Carlyle Sterling ii. vii. (1872) 142 Our course lay along the Valley of the Rhone. 1883 R. W. Dixon Mano iii. viii. 136 Nor doubt I where my voyage next must lie. |
d. Of the wind: To remain in a specified quarter.
| 1604 E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist. Indies iv. v. 218 Small furnaces vpon the sides of the mountaines, built expresly where the winde lies. 1704 Ray Creation i. (ed. 4) 96 The wind lying in that corner at least three quarters of the Year. 1876 ‘Mark Twain’ Tom Sawyer i. 4 But in spite of her, Tom knew where the wind lay, now. 1886 F. T. Elworthy West Somerset Word-Bk. 434 Which way do the wind lie 'smornin? |
e. Of horses, yachts, etc., in a race: to occupy a specified ordinal position. Also transf.
| 1951 E. Rickman Come Racing with Me iii. 24 What is that with the light blue sleeves lying fourth? 1955 J. Christopher Year of Comet ii. 49 Who's lying fourth? 1972 D. Francis Smokescreen iv. 55 He took the first half mile without apparent effort, lying about sixth. 1974 Country Life 24 Oct. 1189/3 Busted is lying third in this year's table of sire's winnings. |
11. Naut. a. Of a ship: To be stationed in a berth or anchorage.
| c 1121 O.E. Chron. an. 1009 (Laud MS.) And þær [þa scipu] sceoldan licgan. c 1470 Henry Wallace vii. 1068 A hundreth schippys..in hawyn was lyand thar. 1495 Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 254 The seid ship lying at Rode in the Kynges haven. 1530 Palsgr. 610/1, I lye at an anker, as a shyppe dothe. 1775 R. Chandler Trav. Asia Minor (1825) I. 35 They lay at anchor near Tenedos. a 1812 A. Cherry Song, Bay of Biscay 7 Our poor devoted bark, Till next day, there she lay, In the Bay of Biscay O! 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. iii. I. 302 He..lay in port when he was ordered to chase a Sallee rover. 1851 D. G. Mitchell Fresh Glean. 12 The Zebra lay just off the pier. |
b. To steer in a (specified) direction. Also (quasi-trans.) to lie the course: (of a ship) to have her head in the direction wished. to lie at hull: see hull n.2 2.
| 1574 Bourne Regiment for Sea xix. (1577) 51 a, If the ship haue had often trauerse by the meanes of contrary windes, so that she could not lie hir course. 1597–8 Bp. Hall Sat. iv. v. 121 Whiles his false broker lyeth in the wind. 1719 De Foe Crusoe ii. ii. (1840) 27 They could not lie near the wind. 1748 Anson's Voy. iii. v. 342 The proas..are capable of lying much nearer the wind than any other vessel hitherto known. 1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1780) G gg, The ship cannot lie her course without being close-hauled. 1800 Nelson in Nicolas Disp. (1845) IV. 189 The Success being to leeward, Captain Peard..lay across his hawse. 1892 H. M. Doughty Our Wherry in Wendish Lands 123 The water⁓way we now entered..was scarcely four feet deep..and that only in the middle. Luckily we could just lie it. Ibid. 301 A turn enabled us to lie our course, and up the sail went. |
12. fig. a. Of immaterial things: To exist, be found, have place, reside (in some specified place or quarter); to be set, fixed, or arranged in some specified position or order. † to lie fair: to be just or reasonable. † to lie in common: to be common to or among several possessors. spec. const. against, for, to, in legal use.
| c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1916 For-ði wexem wið gret nið And hate, for it in ille (herte) lið. a 1300 Cursor M. 22280 Al falshed and feluni, And al tresun sal in him lii. 1380 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 334 And þus popes & prelates kepen to hem silf assoylyng, in which lyþe wynnyng. c 1449 Pecock Repr. ii. xiv. 233 Whiche ij. textis, if thei ben considered as thei liggen to gidere in rewe. 1523 Skelton Garl. Laurel 1200 Therby lyith a tale. 1538 Starkey England i. ii. 33 Herin, me semyth lyth a dowte. 1566 W. Adlington Apuleius To Rdr., I have not..so absolutely translated every word as it lieth in the prose. 1641 Milton Animadv. v. Wks. 1851 III. 223 If the words lay thus in order. 1662 Stillingfl. Orig. Sacr. i. i. §15 This defect..of those histories is either more general, which lies in common to them all, or [etc.]. Ibid. ii. iv. §1 If the opposition did not lie between the order of true Prophets..and the false Prophets. 1672 R. Montagu in Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) I. 520 Methinks it is natural and lies fair enough that..I should have some share in [etc.]. 1704 Swift T. Tub Wks. 1760 I. 67 Their father..commanded, that whatever they got should lie in common among them all. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 170 ¶12 Their Acquaintance and Conversation has lain wholly among the vicious Part of Womankind. 1719 J. T. Philipps tr. Thirty four Confer. 43 The fault lies at their own doors. 1845 M{supc}Culloch Taxation i. iv. (1852) 109 If the choice lay only between a tax on property and a tax on income. 1848 J. H. Newman Loss & Gain 147 He..holds many profound truths in detail, but is quite unable to see how they lie to each other. 1861 M. Pattison Ess. (1889) I. 33 The people themselves, incapable of discerning where their true interest lay. 1868 Freeman Norm. Conq. (1876) II. vii. 112 Their sympathies lay wholly with Gruffydd. 1883 R. W. Dixon Mano i. viii. 23 And told him all the truth, how all things lay. 1958 Times 26 Apr. 6/7 If a chief constable is dismissed by a county council an appeal lies to the Home Secretary. 1964 Mod. Law Rev. XXVII. iii. 322 Nowadays, after the revival of certiorari as a remedy lying for intra-jurisdictional defects, the scope of review on habeas corpus must be defined with more accuracy. 1970 Internat. & Compar. Law Q. 4th Ser. XIX. ii. 306 The Erbersatzanspruch lies against the heirs, and consists of a sum equal to half the value of the portion, to which a legitimate intestate heir would be entitled. 1971 Mod. Law Rev. XXXIV. vi. 691 Where X and Y have a regular course of dealing and are likely to make contracts in the future, a quia timet injunction will lie to prevent Z, a third party, from inducing breaches of such contracts as may be made in the future. |
† b. Of thoughts, inclinations, activities, etc.: To have a specified direction. Obs.
| 1633 Bp. Hall Hard Texts, N.T. 281 Our fight doth not lye against flesh and blood. 1641 J. Jackson True Evang. T. iii. 189 The Elench here lyes directly, and point-blanck against the Papists. 1666 Boyle Orig. Formes & Qual. (1667) 2 The..Prejudices that lye against them. 1672 Villiers (Dk. Buckhm.) Rehearsal i. i. (Arb.) 25 My humour lyes another way. 1692 R. L'Estrange Fables, Life æsop (1708) 22 æsop's Faculty lay notably that way. 1825 New Monthly Mag. XIII. 17 My inclinations have not lain towards prose. |
c. to lie in (a person): to rest or centre in him; to depend upon him, be in his power (to do). Now chiefly in phr. as far as in (me, etc.) lies. Also, to lie in one's power, to lie in (or † on) one's hands.
| c 1350 Will. Palerne 965 Þer-for loueliche ladi in þe lis al min hope. c 1374 Chaucer Compl. Mars 184 Sith hit lythe in his myght. 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. xxi. 431 Hit lyth in my grace, Wheþer þei deye oþer deye nat. c 1440 Generydes 3109, I wote right wele it lithe in me The Sowdon to destroye. 1470–85 Malory Arthur ii. iii, Aske what ye wil and ye shall haue it, and hit lye in my power to yeue hit. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon lxxxi. 243 It lyeth now in you to do with hym at your pleasure. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 255 b, Thei promised the kyng, to doo all that in theim laie with their frendes. 1590 Marlowe Edw. II (1598) H 2 b, Fauour him my Lord, as much as lieth in you. 1593 Shakes. Rich. II, i. ii. 4 Correction lyeth in those hands Which made the fault that wee cannot correct. 1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. lx. §7 The Church, as much as in her lieth, wilfully casteth away their soules. 1605 Bacon Adv. Learn. ii. vii. §2 (1873) 113 To me..that do desire as much as lieth in my pen [etc.]. 1613 Overbury A Wife Wks. (1856) 44 Women though they weaker be..yet on their hands The chastity of men doth often lye. 1642 Rogers Naaman 176 As much as in you hath lyen. 1662 Chas. II in Julia Cartwright Henrietta of Orleans (1894) 121, I am sure I have done all that lies in my power. 1720 Ozell Vertot's Rom. Rep. I. iv. 226 All the Hopes of the Republic lay in an old Man just taken from the Plough. 1875 Scrivener Lect. Text N.T. 9 Resolved, so far as in him lay, to root out the Christian Faith. 1885 Tennyson Tiresias, Only in thy virtue lies The saving of our Thebes. |
† d. To belong or pertain to a person (to do); to pertain, be attached or incident to a thing. Also, to lie (one) in hand to do. Obs.
| a 1225 Leg. Kath. 779 Ne lið hit nawt to þe to leggen lahe upon me. 13.. Minor Poems fr. Vernon MS. (E.E.T.S.) 505/453 Þer-to liht muche mede. c 1430 Hymns Virg. 42 To me, maistir deuel, it lijs; To ihesu wole y take hede. 1577 tr. Bullinger's Decades (1592) 73 He cannot choose..but..do all things, that lie God a King and Prieste in hande to doe. 1657 W. Rand tr. Gassendi's Life Peiresc i. 59 Contrarily, it lies me in hand, I suppose, to take heed, least [etc.]. |
e. to lie with: to be the office or province of (some one) to do something.
| 1885 Manch. Exam. 22 Sept. 5/1 It lies now with Turkey to take the initiative. |
f. To rest or be imposed as a burden, charge, obligation, etc. upon a person; to be incumbent or obligatory upon; to press or weigh upon (one's mind or heart).
| a 1300 Cursor M. 8348 (Cott.) He tald þat him lai apon hert. Ibid. 13385 (Gött.) On vs ligges noght þe nede. 1526 Tindale Acts xxvii. 20 Noo smale tempest laye apon vs. 1551 Recorde Pathw. Knowl. Ep. to King, Sundrie occasions which may lye them on. 1596 Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, v. ii. 48 O, would the quarrell lay vpon our heads. 1630 Sanderson Serm. II. 255 It lieth us upon, to employ it to the best advantage we can. 1666 Bunyan Grace Ab. ¶86 That Scripture lay much upon me, without shedding of Blood is no remission. 1676 W. Hubbard Happiness of People 49 The present distress of the war that hath lyen so long upon us. a 1715 Burnet Own Time (1724) I. 62 It was a duty lying on them by the Covenant. 1722 De Foe Plague (Rtldg.) 94 These Things..lay upon my Mind. 1794 Burke Sp. agst. W. Hastings Wks. XVI. 74 With those charges lying upon him. 1804 Castlereagh in Owen Wellesley's Desp. 258 It lay upon them to offer terms to us. 1873 Act 36 & 37 Vict. c. 86 §24 It shall lie on the defendant to prove that the child is not of such age. |
g. To be set at stake; to hang or depend on or upon a hazard, doubtful issue, etc.
| 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. iii. 12 Full fast she fled..As if her life upon the wager lay. 1601 Shakes. All's Well iii. vii. 43 He persists As if his life lay on't. 1606 ― Ant. & Cl. iii. viii. 5 Our fortune lyes Vpon this iumpe. 1668 R. Steele Husbandman's Calling iv. (1672) 52 Nor..can he reform sin, if his life lay on it. 1760–72 H. Brooke Fool of Qual. (1809) II. 142 We entered as warmly into it [the question], as though a province had lain at stake. |
h. to lie in: to consist in, to have its ground or basis in. † Also with inf. instead of in and object.
| 1589 Puttenham Eng. Poesie iii. xxii. (Arb.) 265 Another point of surplusage lieth not so much in superfluitie of your words. 1633 G. Herbert Temple, Faith vii, If blisse had lien in art or strength, None but the wise or strong had gained it. 1644 Milton Areop. (Arb.) 51 But here the great art lyes to discern in what [etc.]. 1724 A. Collins Gr. Chr. Relig. 75 The argument lies in the word Netser. a 1770 Jortin Serm. (1771) VII. ii. 29 The perfection of every being must lie in its best part. 1871 B. Stewart Heat §84 Our only chance of success lies in abstracting heat from this liquid. 1881 Gardiner & Mullinger Eng. Hist. i. iii. 48 The true remedy lay..in female education. Ibid. x. 178 Pitt's strength lay in his character. |
i. to lie in, within: to be contained or comprised in (a specified room or compass); † to admit of being expressed in (rhyme).
| a 1300 Cursor M. 9240 (Gött.) Of abiud [cam] Elyachim, Of quam Asor, sadoch of him, þat loth er for to lig in rim. 1712 Addison Spect. No. 414 ¶1 The Beauties of the most stately Garden or Palace lie in a narrow Compass. 1771 Junius Lett. lviii. 301 The question..lies within a very narrow compass. |
† j. to lie at one's heart: to be the object of one's affection or desire. Similarly, to lie heavy at or to one's heart: to give one grave anxiety. Obs.
| 1607 Shakes. Cor. iv. ii. 48 It would vnclogge my heart Of what lyes heauy too't. 1638 R. Baker tr. Balzac's Lett. (vol. II.) 32, I have something, I know not what, lies heavy at my heart. 1673 Sir W. Temple To Dk. Ormond Wks. 1720 I. 123 The Spaniards have but one Temptation to quarrel with Us, which is an occasion of recovering Jamaica, for that has ever lien at their hearts. |
13. (Chiefly in Law.) Of an action, charge, claim, etc.: To be admissible or sustainable.
| c 1320 Sir Tristr. 853 Certes, þi fader þan slouȝ y. Seþþen þou so hast sayd, Amendes þer ouȝt to ly. c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. Prol. 409 For sythe no cause of deth lyth in this cace, Ȝow oughte to ben the lyghtere merciable. 1495 Act 11 Hen. VII, c. 24 §1 None essoyne or proteccion to lye nor to be allowed in the same. 1621 H. Elsing Debates Ho. Lords (Camden) 108 To consider what appeales out of the Chancery to this Courte doe lye. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. iii. xlii. 277 There lyeth Excommunication for Injustice. 1712 Prideaux Direc. Ch.-wardens (ed. 4) 75 There doth lye an Appeal to the Bishop. 1745 Wesley Answ. Ch. 5, I should rejoice if there lay no other Objection against them, than that of Erroneous Opinions. 1748 Richardson Clarissa (1811) VIII. 253 If not, then indeed is thy conscience seared, and no hopes will lie for thee. 1756 Burke Subl. & B. ii. ix, Some or all of these objections will lie against every figure of a cross. 1818 Cruise Digest (ed. 2) V. 430 A writ of error did not lie after he attained his full age. 1850 Robertson Serm. Ser. iii. ix. (1853) 121 One from whose knowledge..there lies almost no appeal. 1865 Lightfoot Galat. (1874) 124 Still more serious objections lie against identifying it with any later visit in the Acts. 1866 Crump Banking iv. 93 In which case no action for damages would lie. |
† 14. Of land, landed possessions: To appertain to. Obs.
| 839 in Birch Cartul. Sax. I. 599, xiiii aeceras & ða mæde þe þær to lið. c 1050 in Kemble Cod. Dipl. IV. 232 ælc ðara landa ðe on mines fæder dæᵹe læᵹ into Cristes cyrcean. a 1225 Leg. Kath. 28 King of þat lond þat lei into Rome. a 1225 Juliana 13 Alle þe londes þe þerto liggeð. c 1420 Chron. Vilod. st. 983 A parcell of lond..Þe wheche ryȝtwyslyche to þat Abbay lay. 1583 Stubbes Anat. Abus. ii. (1882) 29 A house, with pasture lieng to it. 1618 Bolton Florus i. ix. (1636) 24 Whereas they had in the beginning no Land of their owne lying to their City. |
¶ III. 15. trans. Used causatively or by mistake for lay v.1 Now rare.
| 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) VII. 369 He was wont to legge [MS. γ lygge] his heed uppon a forme. a 1400–50 Alexander 2101 He comands To gedire þam vp ilka gome & þam in grauys ligg. 1402 Jack Upland (Skeat) 46–7 And whan ye liggen it [your habit] besyde you, than lig ye youre religion besyde you, and ben apostatas. c 1485 Digby Myst. (1882) iv. 549 We shall..ly hym in the mold. a 1500 H. Medwall Nature (Brandl) ii. 1088 Thy sores whyche be mortall Onles that thys medycyns to theym be layn. 1641 Best Farm. Bks. (Surtees) 48 That in mowinge hee neauer lye out his sheaues beyonde the balkes but rather within the balkes. c 1648–50 R. Brathwait Barnabees Jrnl. iii. P. iv, I saw a Tombe one had beene laine in. 1699 Garth Dispens. ii. (1706) 16 Whilst Seas of melted oar lye waste the Plains. a 1703 Burkitt On N.T. Mark iv. 41 Christ, as God, lies a law upon the most lawless creatures. 1708 J. C. Compl. Collier (1845) 18 Would they but lye their groundless pretences by. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones xii. xii, The whole furniture of the infernal regions hath long been appropriated to the managers of play-houses, who seem lately to have lain them by as rubbish. 1802 Med. Jrnl. VIII. 507, I dressed the wound, lying down as much of the scalp as [etc.]. 1809 Malkin Gil Blas i. xvi. ¶5 The cloth was lain. Down we sat at table. 1880 F. G. Lee Church under Eliz. II. 245 As God had lain this peer's honour in the dust. |
IV. Combined with adverbs.
† 16. lie aback. a. To be backward, reluctant, or shy. Obs.
| 1560 in Tytler Hist. Scot. (1864) III. 397 Not only shall any of his own pretend to disobey or ly aback in this action, but [etc.]. 1596 Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. ii. 148 Nathir..in tyme of neid lyes the Pechtis abak w{supt} thair supporte. |
† b. as n. Shyness, timidity. Obs.
| c 1600 Montgomerie Cherrie & Slae 1423 Sir, I have sein them baith, In braidieness and lye aback, Escape and cum to skaith. |
17. lie about, to lie here and there; to be left lying carelessly or in disorder.
| 1852 C. Kingsley Hypatia (1853) I. xiii. 274 Why, these poor blackguards lying about are very fair specimens of humanity. 1891 R. Buchanan Come live with Me II. xiii. 168 Ye might leave it [sc. poison] lying about, and mischief might happen. 1891 W. Morris News from Nowhere v. 31 Most children, seeing books lying about, manage to read by the time they are four years old. 1934 G. B. Shaw Simpleton of Unexpected Isles i. 4, I hate to see dust lying about. Look! You could write your name in it. |
† 18. lie abroad. To lodge out of one's house or abode; to reside in a foreign country (in quot. 1651 with pun on lie v.2). Obs.
| c 1645 Howell Lett. (1650) III. 13 We might go barefoot, and ly abroad as beasts having no other canopy than the wild air. 1651 Walton Life Sir H. Wotton Reliq. W. c 1 b, An Embassadour is an honest man, sent to lie abroad for the good of his Countrey. 1653 Holcroft Procopius ii. 39 He..being said to be sent to ly abroad, to prevent mischief to the Camp. 1675 Collect. Sev. Treat. Penal Laws Pref. A iv, The Popes Ambassadors..lye abroad for his..advantage. |
19. lie along. a. To be prostrate at full length, to lie outstretched on the ground (now arch.); to extend along a surface.
| 1530 Palsgr. 601/1, I lye..as one lyeth alonge upon the grounde. 1600 Shakes. A.Y.L. ii. i. 30 As he lay along Vnder an oake. 1734 J. Ward Introd. Math. App. Gauging 455 To find what Quantity of Liquor is in any Cask, when its Axis is Parallel to the Horizon, viz. when it lies along. 1737 Whiston Josephus, Antiq. vi. i. §1 Dagon..lay along, as having fallen down from the basis whereon he had stood. 1771 Goldsm. Hist. Eng. I. 91 A cell so small, that he could neither stand erect, nor lie along in it. 1803 Beddoes Hygëia x. 21 Few persons, suddenly stimulated to anger as they were lying along, would continue to repose in the same easy manner. 1883 R. W. Dixon Mano iii. vi. 129 Him who there lay dead along. 1885–94 R. Bridges Eros & Psyche July xxii, The..wings, That from his shoulders lay along at rest. |
b. Naut. Of a ship: To incline to one side under the pressure of a wind abeam.
| 1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1780) s.v. Along, Lying-Along, the state of being pressed down sideways by a weight of sail in a fresh wind that crosses the ship's course. 1781 Archer in Naval Chron. XI. 288 The Ship lay very much along, by the pressure of the wind. 1838 Poe A. G. Pym xiii. Wks. (1865) IV. 109 The hulk lay more along than ever, so that we could not stand an instant without lashing ourselves. |
20. lie back. To lean backwards against some support.
| 1894 Crockett Raiders 14, I shipped the oars and lay back thinking. |
21. lie by. † a. To have a concubine. (Cf. lie-by 1.) Obs.
| 1571 Satir. Poems Reform. xxviii. 28 My Father..had ane wyfe, Thocht he abusit his body, and lay by. |
b. Naut. = lie to 29 a: see by adv. 2 b.
| 1613 [see by adv. 2 b]. 1666 Lond. Gaz. No. 60/1 Our Fregats received some damage in their sails, and..were forced to ly by to mend them. 1748 Anson's Voy. ii. v. 177 We lay by all the night..for Captain Saunders..to join us. 1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1780) A a a 4, To make sail, after having lain-by for some time. |
c. To remain unused, be laid up in store.
| 1642 Rogers Naaman 59 Let his carnall favour, and erroneous conceits ly by, let him empty himselfe of a worldly heart. Ibid. 441 Peters nets lay by when the season was. 1692 R. L'Estrange Fables cccclviii. 434 The..Wretchedness of Avarice, that rather then make use of the Bounties of Providence in their Seasons, suffers them to lye by and Perish. 1719 W. Wood Surv. Trade 74 Thriving Nations have..great Stores lying by of their own Manufactures. 1843 Mrs. Carlyle Lett. I. 254, I had..pillows lying by of no use. |
d. To keep quiet, withdraw from observation; to remain inactive, rest.
| 1709 Addison Tatler No. 133 ¶5 To lie by for some Time in Silence and Obscurity. 1754 Richardson Grandison II. 53 Sir H. ‘What a plague—you did not cane him?’ Sir Ch. ‘He got well after a fortnight's lying by’. 1809 Malkin Gil Blas x. i. ¶6 We determined on lying by for a day at Valladolid, as well to rest our mules, as to call on Signor Sangrado. 1824 Scott St. Ronan's xxv, I lay by on the watch for some opportunity when I might mend my own situation with my father. 1840 R. H. Dana Bef. Mast xxxi. 117, I must go below, and lie-by for a day or two. 1892 Law Times XCIII. 414/1 The plaintiff had lain by, whereas he should have taken the earliest opportunity of coming to the court. |
22. lie down. a. (ME. also lie adown.) See sense 2 and down adv. 5. Also refl. (now arch.). Also in pregnant senses: † To fall in battle; † to die; to go to bed; to give up; to be remiss or lazy.
| c 1205 Lay. 6864 Seoððen he dun læi [c 1275 deaȝede]. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 1145 Þe romeins leie sone adoun; he made ampti place, & þe brutons arise vaste. Ibid. 2204 Oþer ligge adoun & be aslawe. a 1300 Cursor M. 10711 Þan lai þai all in kneling dun. 1340–70 Alex. & Dind. 446 We liggen down in our den. c 1460 Towneley Myst. ii. 326 So lig down ther and take thi rest. 1535 Coverdale Ruth iii. contents, Ruth lyeth her downe in the barne at Boos fete. ― Isa. xi. 6 The leoparde shal lye downe by the gote. a 1631 Donne Poems (1650) 17 Why should we rise, because 'tis light? Did we lie downe, because 'twas night? 1774 Foote Cozeners iii. Wks. 1799 II. 185 Mrs. Air. Pray, Madam, is the young lady at home? Mrs. Fl. Just lain down for a little. 1815 Scott Guy M. ii, They rose early and lay down late. 1847 Marryat Childr. N. Forest iv, There may be anether [stag] lying down in the fern close to us. 1860 Tyndall Glac. i. xvi. 113, I lay down and had five minutes sleep. 1861 G. W. Dasent Burnt Njal II. 312 Kari lay him down. 1904 W. H. Smith Promoters i. 21 When they finally lie down, we'll just say, ‘All right, we'll go ahead alone.’ 1916 Lit. Digest 8 Jan. 87/1 It is natural enough that the accusation of ‘lying down’ and quitting has been cast up in turn at each of the participants in the conference. 1918 E. Pound Let. 3 Apr. (1971) 134 It is the best that can be done. Hope Kahn won't think I am lying down on the job. 1926 J. Black You can't Win xiv. 193 An ambitious fighting young lawyer who never ‘laid down’ on a client. |
† b. To be brought to bed of a child. Obs.
| c 1450 Merlin 89 The kynge sawgh that the quene was redy to ly down. 1580 Lyly Euphues Ep. Ded. (Arb.) 214 Of the second I went a whole yeare big, and yet when euerye one thought me ready to lye downe, I did then quicken. 1620 J. Pyper tr. Hist. Astrea i. vi. 171 His wife lay downe, but it was of a daughter. 1654 tr. Martini's Conq. China 212 Matrons with Child and ready to lye down. 1692 R. L'Estrange Fables xxii. (1708) 29 A Wolf came to a Sow that was just lying down, and very kindly offer'd to take care of her Litter. 1818 W. Godwin in Kegan Paul Life (1876) II. 256 He says..that Eliza was expected to lie down in two days after he sailed. |
† c. Of an army: To take up a position before.
| 1693 Mem. Cnt. Teckely i. 82 This obliged Heister to demand Cannon and Foot, with whom he lay down before the Castle of Kus. |
d. to take (a beating, defeat, etc.) lying down: to receive it with abject submission.
| 1888 Sat. Rev. 4 Aug. 133/1 Those who..profess themselves willing to take, ‘lying down’, any and every inconvenience that the victorious Irish may inflict. 1914 G. B. Shaw Androcles (1916) i. 17 You know, I should feel ashamed if I let myself be struck like that, and took it lying down. 1931 E. F. Benson Mapp & Lucia viii. 229 She had to swallow her medicine... I had no idea.. that she would take it lying down like that. 1974 M. Gilbert Flash Point viii. 64, I heard what the beak said to you. I had an idea you weren't going to take it lying down. |
† 23. lie forth. Of bees: To settle outside the hive. (Cf. lie out, 27 b.) Obs.
| 1609 C. Butler Fem. Mon. (1634) 47 Those [hives] that have lyen forth, or otherwise be very full, you may let alone. |
24. lie in. a. To be brought to bed of a child († also const. with); to be ‘confined’. Also fig.
| c 1440 Promp. Parv. 304/2 Lyyn' yn or yn chylde bedde..decubo. c 1530 Ld. Berners Arth. Lyt. Bryt. (1814) 42 As yet I am not determyned in what place she shall lye in. 1602 Rowlands Tis Merrie when Gossips meete 35 When I lay in of my first Boy. 1607 Shakes. Cor. i. iii. 86 You must go visit the good Lady that lies in. 1626 Bacon Sylva §899 The Shee-Beare breedeth, and lyeth in with her Young. 1729–30 Bolingbroke in Swift's Lett. (1766) II. 105 His wife lies-in with one child. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones xii. xiv, Five hungry children, and a wife lying in of a sixth. 1762 Goldsm. Cit. W. xc, They regularly retire every year at proper intervals to lie in of the spleen. 1825 New Monthly Mag. XIII. 51 Learning then ordinarily lay-in of folio volumes. 1871 Tylor Prim. Cult. 76, 'Tis like a Koravan eating asafœtida when his wife lies in. |
† b. To amount to, cost (a certain sum); ‘to stand (a person) in’ so much. Obs.
| 1622 in Picton L'pool Munic. Rec. (1883) I. 212 Soe much money..as the tendinge and keepinge of the said clocke shall lye in. 1660 Willsford Scales Comm. 1 A Grocer bought 53/4 C grosse weight of Wares, which lay him in..{pstlg}163 13s. 8d. 1677 A. Yarranton Eng. Improv. 134 The Corn will lye the Mum-Brewers in Two Shillings Six-pence per Bushel. 1755 Johnson Lie 21, To cost: as, it lies me in more money. |
c. Naut. (See quot.)
| 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Lie in! the order to come in from the yards when reefing, furling, or other duty is performed. |
d. To remain in bed (after one's usual hour of rising). Cf. lie-in (lie n.2 6).
| 1893–4 R. O. Heslop Northumb. Words II. 449 Lie, in the combination lie-in, to sleep longer than intended. 1911 E. M. Clowes On Wallaby v. 144 On Sundays her husband and son ‘lay in’, as she called it, till midday, while she gave them their breakfast in bed. |
25. lie off. a. Naut. Of a ship or boat: To stand some distance away from the shore or from some other craft.
| 1596 Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, iii. i. 79 The remnant Northward, lying off from Trent. 1726 G. Roberts Four Years Voy. 26 As I lay off at an Anchor. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Lie off! an order given to a boat to remain off on her oars till permission is given for her to come alongside. 1890 Hall Caine Bondman i. ix, [The schooner] intending to lie off at Ramsey for contraband rum. |
b. To cease work temporarily; to take a rest.
| 1891 R. Kipling City Dreadf. Nt. 81 As soon as he makes a little money he lies off and spends it. 1899 Nation (N.Y.) 21 Dec. 467/1 If McKinley would lie off for the next four years, he might make a very good free-trade candidate for the Presidency in 1904. |
c. Racing slang. ‘To make a waiting race’ (Farmer Slang 1896).
26. lie on. † a. To be laid on. Obs.
| 1641–2 Shute Sarah & Hagar (1649) 109 Upon the first laying on of the rod, it may be, we will stamp and chafe; but when it still lies on..we lie quiet, and then our spirit comes down. |
b. Of a vessel: To be bound for.
| 1850 Tait's Mag. XVII. 38/1 Not one [vessel] was, just then, ‘lying on’ for the Baltic way, the season being so late. |
27. lie out. † a. To stretch out, extend. Obs.
| 1601 Holland Pliny I. 54 Spaine and France..lying out with their promontories into two contrary seas. Ibid. 61 Corsica..lyeth out from the North into the South, and containeth in length an hundred and fiftie miles. |
b. † To rest or settle outside (obs.); to sleep out, now dial. of cattle, to be left unhoused at night. Obs.
| 1630 J. Levett Ord. Bees (1634) 34 Their Bees haue exceedingly lyen out upon the Hiue and board. 1712 Arbuthnot John Bull iii. i, The witnesses farther made oath, that the said Timothy lay out a-nights. 1886 Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk., Lie in, Lie out, said of horses or cows. If they are kept housed at night, they are said to lie in, if not they lie out. Do your 'oss lie in or out? |
c. Sc. To delay; spec. to delay in entering upon property as heir.
| 1640–1 Kirkcudbr. War-Comm. Min. Bk. (1855) 42 For his lying sae lang out in not subscryveing of the covenant. 1673–88 Fountainhall in M. P. Brown Suppl. Decis. (1826) III. 146 A man is married on a woman, that is apparent heir to lands.—She, to defraud her husband either of the jus mariti or the courtesy, lies out and will not enter. 1868 Act 31 & 32 Vict. c. 101 §6 The rights and remedies competent to a superior against his vassal lying out unentered. |
d. to lie it out: to sleep on late into the morning. ? Obs.
| 1748 Richardson Clarissa (1811) V. 2 The dear creature was so frightened, and so fatigued, last night, no wonder she lies it out this morning. |
e. to lie out of one's money: to remain unpaid. to lie out of one's ground (Racing slang): see quot. 1896.
| 1860 Geo. Eliot Mill on Fl. i. viii. I. 151, I can't lie out o' my money any longer. You must raise it as quick as you can. 1892 Daily Chron. 19 Apr. 9/2 How can zealous discharge of this duty be expected, when the officer..has to advance the cost of the summons, and lie out of his money for a year at a time, if not for ever? 1896 Farmer Slang, To lie out of one's ground = to ‘lie off’ too long, so as to be unable to recover lost ground. |
28. lie over. a. To be held over or deferred to a future occasion.
| 1856 Mrs. Carlyle Lett. II. 294, I have a strange story to tell you..but that must lie over, or I shall miss the omnibus. |
b. ‘To remain unpaid after the time when payment is due’ (Craig 1848).
c. Naut. (See quot.)
| 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Lie over, a ship heeling to it with the wind abeam. |
d. U.S. To suspend travelling; to stop.
| 1849 Ex. Doc. 31st U.S. Congress 1 Sess. Senate No. 64. 186 But I shall make an early drive and ‘lie over’ tomorrow at the first water. 1903 A. Adams Log of Cowboy 181 We overtook a number of wagons loaded with wool, lying over, as it was Sunday. |
29. lie to. a. Naut. Of a ship: To come almost to a standstill, with her head as near the wind as possible, by backing or shortening sail.
| 1711 Littleton Let. 13 Aug. in Lond. Gaz. No. 4906/3 The largest of them lay too a long time. 1748 Anson's Voy. i. viii. 79 Another storm..reduced us to the necessity of lying to under our bare poles. 1760–72 H. Brooke Fool of Qual. (1809) III. 81 We shortened sail, and lay to till morning. 1800 Asiatic Ann. Reg., Chron. 117/2 It blew a strong gale..on which Lieut. Roper handed all his sails, except the mizen, which he balanced, and lay to. 1883 Stevenson Treas. Isl. (1886) 212 Take a turn round the capstan, and lie-to for the tide. |
b. Sc. To come to be fond of a person.
| 1768 Ross Helenore 79, I do like him sair, An' that he wad ly too [ed. 1789, p. 85 like me], I hae nae fear. |
30. lie up. † a. To be laid out for burial.
| 1553 Becon Reliques of Rome (1563) 253 Vilanye and synne y{supt} weren vsed & done about dead bodyes ligging vp & yet is vsed about in many places, or the body be borne to church. |
b. To go into or remain in retirement or retreat; to take to one's bed or keep one's room as an invalid; (of a ship) to go into dock.
| 1699 W. Dampier Voy. II. iii. 24 There they [ships] must lye up, or be 3 or 4 Years in their return from a place which may be sailed in 6 Weeks. a 1868 Dickens in Househ. Words (Cent.), He has a bad cold—rheumatism—he must lie up for a day or two. 1881 Greener Gun 595 The black bear lies up during the day in caves and amongst rocks. 1893 R. Kipling Many Invent. 26 When there's nothing going on, there is nothing going on, and you lie up. 1897 Allbutt's Syst. Med. II. 443 Some days the patient may feel comparatively well and fit for work, on other days he is languid and lies up. |
c. to lie up in lavender: to be in safe keeping or custody. (Cf. lavender n.2 2.)
| 1822 Scott Nigel xxv, Alas! the good gentleman lies up in lavender..himself. |
d. To lay or shape one's course.
| 1779 Forrest Voy. N. Guinea 169 The land wind veered to the northward, and we lay up no better than west. 1868 Atkinson Cleveland Gloss., Lig up to, to proceed towards, to lay or shape one's course to, a given place. |
Add: [B.] [IV.] [20.] [a.] Also, to assume or resume a recumbent posture (earlier and later examples).
| 1862 ‘C. Bede’ College Life 74 Mr. Percival Wylde was lying back upon his pillows, apparently engaged in sipping the gruellous compound. 1920 E. O'Neill Beyond Horizon iii. i. 153 He lies back and closes his eyes, breathing pantingly. 1979 W. Golding Darkness Visible xiii. 216 She lay back again and shut her eyes. 1986 A. Brookner Misalliance x. 154 Alone, Blanche lay back thankfully, but again sleep did not come. |
b. spec. with reference to unwanted but inevitable sexual intercourse (also sometimes humorously fig.) in phrs. lie back and think of England, lie back and enjoy it, and varr.
| [1912 Lady Hillingdon Jrnl. in J. Gathorne-Hardy Rise & Fall of Brit. Nanny (1972) iii. 71 When I hear his steps outside my door I lie down on my bed, open my legs and think of England.] 1969 S. Hyland Top Bloody Secret ii. 113 He relaxed on the principle of rape-impossible-lie-back-and-enjoy. 1974 L. Deighton Spy Story viii. 82 Reunification is inevitable—lie back and enjoy it. 1977 Partridge Dict. Catch Phrases 138/2 Lie back and enjoy it! ‘A c.p. allegedly used as advice to a girl when escape from rape is impossible’ (Barry Prentice, 15 December 1974): since c . 1950. 1987 Daily Tel. 4 Apr. 9/1 From then until the end of the play's three-hour traffic, I lay back and thought of England, letting Trevor Nunn have his way with me and with Heywood's mundane piece of early 17th-century drama. |
▪ V. lie, v.2
(laɪ)
Inflected lying (ˈlaɪɪŋ), lied (laɪd). Forms: inf. 1 léoᵹan, 2 leioȝen, 2–5 liȝe-n, 3 lege, (imp. lih), 4 ley(e, lei, lije, li, 3–7 ly, 3–8 lye, 4 leighe, leiȝe, lyghe, lyeȝe, leie, 4–5 leȝe, 4–6 ley, Sc. le, 5 ly(ȝ)yn, 5–6, 9 Sc. and north. lee, 4– lie. ind. pres. 2nd sing. α. 3 Orm. leȝhesst, 4 liȝest, leyest, lex(s)t, lixt(e, 4–5 lyest, 3– liest. β. north. and Sc. 4 lighes, leies, lies, 4–5 lyes, 4–6 leis. 3rd sing. α. 1 léoᵹeþ, l{iacu}hþ, 3 lih(e)ð, ligeð, leȝeð, legheþ, Orm. leȝheþþ, 4 liȝ(e)þ, lyeþ, leiþ, leighth, leȝth, lyeȝ(e)th, lihth, likth, 5 lith(e, 3– lieth. β. 4 liges, leies, leyes, 5 lijs, leghes, 6 Sc. leis, 4– lies, 3rd pl. 6 Sc. lene, leyne. pa. tense. α. 1 léah, léaᵹ, (pl. luᵹon), 2–3 luȝe, 3 leh, læh, lighgh, 3–4 lowe, 4 leigh, legh, ligh, lygh. β. 4 liȝed(e, leiȝede, leeȝide, liede, lyede, leghed, lei(e)d, lieid, 4–6 Sc. leit, leyt, 4–7 lyed, leid, 7 Sc. leed, 4– lied. pa. pple. α. 1 loᵹen, 2–3 i-loȝe(n, loȝen, 3 i-lowe, 3–4 y-low(e, loun, 4 lowe(n, leiȝen. β. 4 liȝed, Sc. leyt, 5 lyet, 4– lied.
[A Com. Teut. str. vb. (in Eng. conjugated weak from the 14th c.): OE. léoᵹan (léah, luᵹon, loᵹen) corresponds to OFris. *liaga, *liatza (recorded in 3rd sing. pres. ind. liucht, pa. tense sing. subj. lege), OS. liogan, liagan (Du. liegen, loog, gelogen), OHG. liogan, loug, lugun, gelogen (MHG. liegen, louc, gelogen, mod.G. lügen, log, gelogen), Goth. liugan, ON. li{uacu}ga (Sw. ljuga, Da. lyve), f. Teut. root *leug- (:laug-: lug-), whence lie n.1; cogn. w. OSl. lŭža lie.]
1. intr. To tell a lie or lies; to utter falsehood; to speak falsely.
| 971 Blickl. Hom. 29 Se awerᵹda gast..sona leah. c 1050 Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 401/1 Fefellisset, þa þa he leaᵹ. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 91 Þu hauest iloȝen þan halie gaste. Ibid. 93 Ne luȝe þu na monnum! Ibid. 153 Hwenne þe muð is open for to liȝe. c 1200 Vices & Virtues (1888) 9 Ðar ðu luȝe, ðu lease dieuel. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 131 He þe neure ne lihgh ne lige ne wile. c 1200 Ormin 5190 Þu leȝhesst, & beswikesst swa þin aȝhen wrecche sawle. c 1205 Lay. 17684 Þus læh [c 1275 leh] þe laðe mon. a 1225 Leg. Kath. 1431 Mit se swiðe lufsome leores ha leien. a 1225 Ancr. R. 236 Þu liest, cweð heo, fule þing. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 3348 He adde so foule ilowe. a 1300 Cursor M. 5143 (Cott.) Þou lighes [Gött. lies, Fairf. lyes, Trin. lyest] now, eber pantener! 1340 Ayenb. 63 Kvead þing hit is to lyeȝe. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xxv. (Julian) 206 My gud brethyre, quhy lest ȝou le? c 1380 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 264 In whiche autorite he seide soþ & in whiche he leiȝede. 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. xxi. 351 Þow lowe tyl eue. c 1394 P. Pl. Crede 542 Þou leyest, & þou lext. c 1400 Gamelyn 297 Thou lixt, seid Gamelyn, so broke I my chyn. 1483 Cath. Angl. 216/1 To Lye (A. Lee), commentari. 1513 Douglas æneis i. Prol. 233 Les than wyse autouris lene [ed. 1553 leyne]. 1567 Gude & Godlie Ball. (S.T.S.) 193, I say, ȝe leit euerie one. 1581 Sidney Apol. Poetrie (Arb.) 52 As I take it, to lye, is to affirme that to be true which is false. 1678 Bunyan Pilgr. i. 7 It was made by him that cannot lye. a 1784 Johnson in Boswell an. 1781 (1848) 670/1 He lies, and he knows he lies. 1885 Burton Arab. Nts. (1886) I. 263, I lied against myself and confessed the theft, albeit I am altogether innocent of it. |
b. to lie of (arch.), † lie on, † lie upon: to tell lies about.
| a 1200 Moral Ode 287 Of þo pine þe þere bued nelle ic hou nout leioȝen. a 1225 Ancr. R. 68 An te unwreste bliðeliche lieð on þe gode. c 1230 Hali Meid. 39 Forȝet ti folc þat liheð þe of weres & worldes wunne. c 1275 Passion of Our Lord 241 in O.E. Misc. 44 A ueole kunne wise hi lowen him vp-on. c 1305 St. Andrew 28 in E.E.P. (1802) 99 Þu wost wel mid alle Þat þu þerof loude lixt. c 1330 Amis & Amil. 838 He leighth on ous, withouten fail. c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 142 Manye men liȝen of þe wounde of þe nose. 1508 Dunbar Flyting w. Kennedie 138 Thocht thow..thus vpoun me leid. 1559 J. Aylmer Harborowe L 2 The smarts of the tormentes made him to confesse it, and lye of him self. 1580 J. Hay Demandes in Cath. Tractates (1901) 59 Quhy ar ye nocht esscheamed..to lie on wss in your preachings, saying [etc.]. 1629 Earle Microcosm., Modest Man (Arb.) 80 Whosoeuer dare lye on him hath power ouer him. 1864 Carlyle Fredk. Gt. IV. 409 Nobody was more lied of. 1871 R. Ellis tr. Catullus lxvii. 20 They lie on her [L. falsum est]. |
c. Proverbial expressions. For to lie in one's teeth, throat, to lie like a trooper, see the ns.
| a 1400 Pistill of Susan 317 Nou þou lyest in þin hed. a 1529 Skelton Merie Tales v. Wks. 1843 I. p. lx, He..woulde lye as fast as a horse woulde trotte. 1530 Palsgr. 610/2 He wyll lye as fast as a dogge wyll trotte. 1588 Marprel. Epist. (Arb.) 21 Bishops will lye like dogs. |
2. fig. Chiefly of inanimate objects: To present false statements; to convey a false impression; to make a deceitful show.
| c 1220 Bestiary 451 Ðe boc ne leȝeð noȝt of ðis. a 1300 Cursor M. 5054 For quen þe tan þe toþer sei Na wight moght þair blodes lei. Ibid. 14702 Þe hali writte lies [Trin. lyeþ] na wight. 1426 Lydg. De Guil. Pilgr. 22376 The merour lyed verily. 1483 Caxton Gold. Leg. 320 b/2 The Philosophers were brought to this that they sayd..that the elementys lyeden or god of nature suffred. 1513 Douglas æneis i. Prol. 270 This wther buik..So frenschlie leis, oneth twa wourdis gais richt. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. i. 587 The Sun, who never lies, Foretels the Change of Weather in the Skies. 1732 Pope Ep. Bathurst 340 Where London's column, pointing at the skies, Like a tall bully, lifts the head, and lies. |
3. quasi-trans. † a. with cogn. obj. Obs.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 16067 Mani lesing had þai loun again iesu þat dai. 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xviii. 400 Þi lesynge..þat þow lowe [v.rr. leighe, leyȝ] til Eue. c 1449 Pecock Repr. ii. iii. 150 Many lesingis y haue herd him lie. c 1500 Wyl Bucke's Test. (Copland) A ij b, My tounge that neuer lied lesinge. |
† b. To say or allege falsely. Obs.
| a 1300 Seven Sins ix. in E.E.P. (1862) 18 O worde ic ȝou lie nelle. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints i. (Petrus) 512 Þu leis all þat þou sais. c 1450 Merlin i. 11 How sholde I..enioyne the penance for thynges which I wene thow lyest veryly. |
c. With adv. or phrase: To take away by lying; to get (a person, etc.) into or out of by lying.
| 1720 T. Gordon Humourist I. 175, I have known great Ministers rail'd and ly'd out of their Places. 1755 J. Shebbeare Lydia (1769) II. 44 Slandering women of reputation, and endeavouring to lye away their characters. 1762 Foote Lyar i. Wks. 1799 I. 290 If you don't one time or another..lye yourself into some confounded scrape, I will consent to be hanged. 1784 R. Bage Barham Downs I. 48 Every one would tell his story, his own way, and combine to lye an honest lawyer out of his bread. 1858 Sir J. Kaye Hist. Afghan War I. 204 The character of Dost Mohamed was lied away. 1865 Carlyle Fredk. Gt. xii. vii. (1872) IV. 177 The tragically earnest meaning of your Life, is quite lied out of you, by a world sunk in lies. 1884 Punch 6 Dec. 276/2 Go on tamely to allow yourself to be lied into Party blindness. |
† 4. trans. To give the lie to. Obs.
| 1389 in Eng. Gilds (1870) 87 If any broþer or syster dispyse or mysconsel or lye his broþer. c 1450 Robin Hood & Monk xiv. in Child Ballads III. 97/2 With þat Robyn Hode lyed Litul Jon. 1464 Waterford Arch. in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 331 He lied and rebuked the balif, to the great contempt of the King. |
Add: [1.] d. To talk, gossip; to tell ‘tall’ stories or exchange anecdotes. orig. and chiefly Black English.
| 1935 Z. N. Hurston Mules & Men i. iv. 92 Cliffert Ulmer told me that I'd get a great deal more [stories] by going out with the swamp-gang. He said they lied a plenty while they worked. 1953 Amer. Speech XXVIII. 117 Lie, to talk. ‘Let's sit down and lie to one another’. |