inlay
Americanverb (used with object)
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inlays,
present (3rd person singular)
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inlaid,
past participle, past
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inlaying
present participle
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to decorate (an object) with layers of fine materials set in its surface.
to inlay a chest with lighter wood.
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to insert or apply (layers of fine materials) in the surface of an object.
to inlay marble in a tabletop.
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Horticulture. to place (a fitted scion) into a prepared stock, as in a method of grafting.
noun
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inlays
plural
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inlaid work.
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a layer of fine material inserted in something else, especially for ornament.
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a design or decoration made by inlaying.
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Dentistry. a filling of metal, porcelain, or the like, that is first shaped to fit a cavity and then cemented into it.
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Horticulture. inlay graft.
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the act or process of inlaying.
verb
noun
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dentistry a filling, made of gold, porcelain, etc, inserted into a cavity and held in position by cement
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decoration made by inlaying
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an inlaid article, surface, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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inlaysimple
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inlayssimple
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have inlaidperfect
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has inlaidperfect
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am inlayingprogressive
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are inlayingprogressive
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is inlayingprogressive
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have been inlayingperfect progressive
-
has been inlayingperfect progressive
Past
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inlaidsimple
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had inlaidperfect
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was inlayingprogressive
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were inlayingprogressive
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had been inlayingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of inlay
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It features “a brass barrel and decorative lockplate, with an additional flourish of silver-wire inlay in a shell pattern.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
The chrysanthemum leaves, the chartreuse of the teapot inlay and the antique bronze are different shades of green — but all come from malachite.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 22, 2023
If, as the New York Times’ Amanda Hess argues, we live in the “golden age of celebrity branding,” liquor is the filigree on its balustrades, the inlay on its armoires, the leaf on its chandeliers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 12, 2023
Her nods to the Navajo culture include a turquoise inlay and a depiction of eagle feathers, which are used to give blessings.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 24, 2023
At the center was an inlay fountain that cooled you with its whisper.
From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri
The palazzo is filled with ornate wall coverings and moldings, rococo furniture and artworks, and marble floors with intricately detailed inlays.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 9, 2026
Instead of decorating them with the traditional mother-of-pearl flowers or leaves, though, he inlays them with tiny numerals laser-cut from abalone shells.
From New York Times ● Mar. 16, 2023
It is made of hand-carved Belgian black marble with brass letter inlays, to match the previous ledger stone.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2022
The image shows the hand-carved Belgian black marble slab with brass letter inlays set into the floor of King George VI Memorial Chapel, St. George’s Chapel, at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 24, 2022
The balustrades are dark wood, and the twisted inlays remind me of crooked fingers, beckoning.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
Bars and rings trade at a premium to the world price at gold and jewellery shops across the country, where bullion emblazoned with dragons is sold alongside ornate goldware inlaid with pearls and rubies.
From Barron's ● Jan. 30, 2026
These days, Art Deco can mean anything from a one-of-a-kind, early-1920s French cabinet, inlaid with ebony-and-ivory flowers, to a Depression-era Buick hood ornament.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2025
It is made of more than 1,000 handblown coloured glass tiles, each inlaid with gold leaf, echoing the colours of the cathedral's stained-glass windows.
From BBC ● Nov. 30, 2025
Her favorite is their outdoor table, which Greene crafted from leftover teak and inlaid with gecko leaves, a nod to her late mother’s favorite plant.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2025
The panels were backed with gold leaf, the fronts inlaid with shimmering diamonds, emeralds, rubies, and jade.
From "Salt to the Sea" by Ruta Sepetys
Hardiman writes that Joyce was a “tractable and ingenious” craftsman who quickly became adept in soldering, casting, inlaying and many other skills required of a medieval jeweler.
From National Geographic ● Jan. 11, 2024
Ponce said he starts with photos of players taken from Twitter or Google searches before inlaying his own vivid designs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 6, 2021
Weaving, furniture inlaying, rug hooking, beer brewing, and scrimshaw are just some of the special exhibits guests can visit at the crafts center.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 27, 2014
Alongside, workmen were inlaying the turf with the seven great runways of a new airport.
From Time Magazine Archive
The Anglo-Saxons understood the art of inlaying enamel, and their colors were remarkably bright and enduring.
From Women of England by Bartlett Burleigh James
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
