lay figure

American  

noun

1. a jointed model of the human body, usually of wood, from which artists work in the absence of a living model.

2. a similar figure used in shops to display costumes.

3. a person of no importance, individuality, distinction, etc.; nonentity.

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lay figure British  

noun

1. an artist's jointed dummy, used in place of a live model, esp for studying effects of drapery

2. a person considered to be subservient or unimportant

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Etymology

Origin of lay figure

1785–95; lay, extracted from obsolete layman < Dutch leeman, variant of ledenman, equivalent to leden- (combining form of lid limb, cognate with Old English, Middle English lith ) + man man )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lay figure

They were within twenty paces of the silent watcher when he moved--up to that time he might have been a lay figure.

From The Great House by Weyman, Stanley John

So I had to treat him like a lay figure and liberate each limb and rub it until the circulation was restored.

From Forty Years of 'Spy' by Ward, Leslie

"George, what an armful!" said the youth, in a sort of half undertone, as he tenderly lifted the little lay figure, and bore it to a crib.

From The American Gentleman's Guide to Politeness and Fashion or, Familiar Letters to his Nephews by Lunettes, Henry

The statue is darkened, and the lay figure of the statue is replaced by the living Jeanne.

From One-Act Plays By Modern Authors by Various

But one must not speak of her as a lay figure: that is crude, elementary ... containing a grain of truth, one admits, but likely to be misinterpreted by the vulgar herd.

From The Gay Adventure A Romance by Bird, Richard