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
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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:
Gold and silver inlay work and green agate stones complete the garment.
From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026
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
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
The inlay work was flawless, the floral design intricate and graceful even on the incomplete pieces he held.
From "A Single Shard" by Linda Sue Park
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
Sometimes she adds strips to form undulating ridges or presses bits of colored clay into carved-out areas as inlays.
From New York Times ● Mar. 9, 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 tiles, in various geometric patterns with occasional brass inlays, cover the top of the wall behind the sink, making a big statement with a minimal amount of material.
From Seattle Times ● May 31, 2019
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
A massive Ruhlmann sideboard, first made in 1920, is inlaid with an ivory marquetry pattern that suggests—to me, least—soap bubbles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2025
The boy king's gold-covered sarcophagus and his burial mask, inlaid with lapis lazuli, will take centre stage at Saturday's opening.
From Barron's ● Oct. 31, 2025
She told French senators this week that initial indications were that "delicate restoration" would be possible for the 19th-Century crown inlaid with diamonds and emeralds.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2025
Her works are filled with whimsy and joy, including a collection of platters and plates featuring inlaid porcelain flowers, vaguely defined creatures that hold birthday candles, penguin pitchers and buddhas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 21, 2024
He has held—held!—a dagger handle at least four hundred years old, made of white jade and inlaid with emeralds.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
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
These two processes are distinct, but marquetry furniture has often portions decorated with inlaying, as also carved ornaments and decorations of beaten, cast, or chiselled metal-work.
From British Manufacturing Industries Pottery, Glass and Silicates, Furniture and Woodwork. by L. Arnoux
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.
