1
as in to enact
to put into effect through legislative or authoritative action
the city council promises to lay down new ordinances that will force dog walkers to clean up after their animals
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to declare
to state clearly and strongly
at the risk of their popularity, the parents laid down the rules for the party and wouldn't accept any arguments
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to specify
to give the rules about (something) clearly and exactly
the supervisor laid down the procedure for a complaint of sexual harassment
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in to relinquish
to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress
commanded the surrounded troops to lay down their weapons
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of lay down
Grande got there and then laid down an UNO reverse.
—
Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 3 Jan. 2025
When left untreated, the body often reacts by laying down scar tissue around the material.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 2 Jan. 2025
The proper scope of such injunctions has been a recurring issue, and the government’s new filing floats that the Supreme Court could choose to immediately take up the new case to lay down the ground rules for lower judges.
—Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 31 Dec. 2024
His great-grandfather, George Blaney, laid down the foundations, while his grandfather Lou claimed over 600 race victories.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 3 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for lay down 
Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 3 Jan. 2025
When left untreated, the body often reacts by laying down scar tissue around the material.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 2 Jan. 2025
The proper scope of such injunctions has been a recurring issue, and the government’s new filing floats that the Supreme Court could choose to immediately take up the new case to lay down the ground rules for lower judges.
—Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 31 Dec. 2024
His great-grandfather, George Blaney, laid down the foundations, while his grandfather Lou claimed over 600 race victories.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 3 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for lay down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lay down
Verb
-
People who want to see tangible change within their own communities should encourage their state lawmakers to enact similar programs – which are already in various stages of development in New York, Oregon, Maryland, Vermont, and Pennsylvania—and vote for local candidates who are pro-climate.Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 13 Jan. 2025
-
Suppose the United States eliminates methane rules and/or enacts tariffs.Ken Silverstein, Forbes, 13 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Biden declared Thursday, Jan. 9 a national day of mourning for the 39th president of the United States.Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY, 12 Jan. 2025
-
Decades before sanctuary cities became a vigorous partisan debate, Sacramento declared itself as one of the first in America.Mathew Miranda, Sacramento Bee, 12 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
In 2023, there was one incident of unruly passenger behavior for every 480 flights compared to one for every 568 flights in 2022, the trade association said, without specifying how many of these incidents involved alcohol.Issy Ronald, CNN, 14 Jan. 2025
-
The law does not specify a time frame in which this disclosure should occur.Jennah Pendleton, Sacramento Bee, 14 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Textor would choose to relinquish his position on the Palace board in the event that Sportsbank’s investment in Eagle is completed.Matt Woosnam, The Athletic, 6 Jan. 2025
-
Angela later relinquished the creative director title.Clare Fisher, People.com, 2 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Some families who moved in decades ago passed homes down to their children.Will Carless, USA TODAY, 12 Jan. 2025
-
Palm Desert, a city of more than 50,000 near Palm Springs, passed a resolution in support of the monument.Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Giuliani has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him and denies any wrongdoing, and continues to falsely assert there was widespread election fraud in 2020, which there is no evidence to support.Alison Durkee, Forbes, 16 Jan. 2025
-
Vivier says modern rhinos can live and reproduce just fine without horns, which are used primarily by bulls to assert their dominance.Dac Collins, Outdoor Life, 16 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
The Neolithic is defined by the adoption of agriculture.Peter Ross, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Jan. 2025
-
But if the guitar hasn’t always been a central player in jazz, the best guitarists have usually had both the challenge and the advantage of having to define their own relationships to the genre.Giovanni Russonello, New York Times, 8 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
The Visual Medium Has a Message How does the medium in which an image is rendered, its materiality, shape our perception of the subject matter?JSTOR Daily, JSTOR Daily, 8 Jan. 2025
-
During the keynote, Huang stated that for one of its demonstrations, the GPU only had to render 2 million pixels in a scene that contained 33 million pixels, with all of the remaining pixels generated by AI.Michael Justin Allen Sexton, PCMAG, 7 Jan. 2025
Articles Related to lay down
Video
Lay vs. Lie
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
Thesaurus Entries Near lay down
Cite this Entry
“Lay down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lay%20down. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share