laid up

Idioms  

1. Also, sick in bed . Ill and confined to bed, as in I was laid up for a week with the flu , or Sally can't come outside; she's sick in bed . [Mid-1500s]

2. Put in a safe place, as in The ship was laid up in dock with engine trouble , or The hikers were laid up in a cave during the storm . [Mid-1600s] Also see under lay in ; lay someone low .

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

laid up

While I was laid up, I spent time reading on social media about former colleagues who were publicizing new books, speaking at conferences and otherwise staying in the limelight—and I felt envious.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 14, 2026

Insurance companies don’t pay primary-care doctors to see patients in hospital; doctors might not know if a patient is laid up with a broken hip or beginning cancer treatment.

From Barron's ● Nov. 12, 2025

The reason that it matters that many of us will be laid up with the regular old seasonal flu is something called co-infection.

From Slate ● Dec. 31, 2024

The image of her laid up in the hospital, looking ready for her close-up in full makeup with one black rose on the pillow beside her, looks like a staged photo for a fashion magazine.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 18, 2024

My master he had seen in Krete, he said, lodged with Idomeneus, while the long ships, leaky from gales, were laid up for repairs.

From "The Odyssey" by Homer

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