layup

1 of 2

noun

lay·​up ˈlā-ˌəp 

1

: the action of laying up or the condition of being laid up

2

: a shot in basketball made from near the basket usually by playing the ball off the backboard

lay up

2 of 2

verb

laid up; laying up; lays up

transitive verb

1

: to store up : lay by

2

: to disable or confine with illness or injury

a knee injury laid him up for a week

3

: to take out of active service

Synonyms

Verb

• cache
• hoard
• lay away
• lay by
• lay in
• put by
• salt away
• squirrel (away)
• stash
• stockpile
• store
• stow
• treasure

Examples of layup in a Sentence

Verb

an eating disorder that would impel her to lay up candy bars in her closet for all-night food binges

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Gary Payton had a burst layup during a run in the third quarter but came up limping on his left calf afterward. —Anthony Slater, The Athletic, 26 Dec. 2024

Ex-Laker Dennis Schroder swished a three after a James block, and Curry hit a driving layup to cut the Lakers’ lead to two with less than 30 seconds to go. —Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 26 Dec. 2024

Verb

Females can lay up to 8 eggs, or nits, per day and adults can live for up to 30 days on a person's head, according to the Centers for Disease Control. —Gabrielle Chenault, The Tennessean, 21 Nov. 2024

Until recently, woven sheets of carbon fiber had to be laid up by hand in a mold, impregnated with resin, then cured for hours in an autoclave oven. —IEEE Spectrum, 28 Mar. 2012

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1845, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

layup

1 of 2 noun

lay·​up ˈlā-ˌəp 

: a basketball shot made from near the basket usually by bouncing the ball off the backboard

lay up

2 of 2 verb

1

: to store up

2

: to disable or confine with illness or injury

a knee injury laid her up for a week

3

: to take out of active service