lays

1. 1
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of lay.

   The bricklayer lays each row level before moving on to the next.

   Every spring the turtle lays her eggs in the warm sand.

   Note

   Every use of this form takes a direct object: something is set down, built up, produced or put forward. A bricklayer lays a course, a hen lays an egg, a gambler lays a bet that the horse will lose, and a committee lays down a principle. One archaic use means to make something subside, the sense behind rain that lays the dust.

2. 2
   noun

   Plural of lay.

   The minstrel knew dozens of lays about ancient battles and doomed romances.

   Medieval lays were often sung to the accompaniment of a harp.

   Note

   One spelling covers several unrelated plurals: lays can be shares of a business's profits, the twists in ropes, or layouts and arrangements. Two colloquial senses, casual sexual partners and acts of intercourse, take the same plural, so a careful writer watches the context. The archaic slang use, a place or activity where someone spends much of their time, belongs to older writing.

Showing meanings only. Show all 2