lay-by

[ley-bahy]

noun

1. British.,  (on a road or railroad) a place beside the main road or track where vehicles may wait.

2. Nautical.,  a mooring place in a narrow river or canal, formed to one side so as to leave the channel free.

lay-by

noun

1. a place for drivers to stop at the side of a main road

2. nautical an anchorage in a narrow waterway, away from the channel

3. a small railway siding where rolling stock may be stored or parked

4. a system of payment whereby a buyer pays a deposit on an article, which is reserved for him until he has paid the full price

verb

1. (tr) to set aside or save for future needs

2. Also: lay to. to cause (a sailing vessel) to stop in open water or (of a sailing vessel) to stop

Word History and Origins

Origin of lay-by¹

First recorded in 1795–1805; noun use of verb phrase lay by

Idioms and Phrases

see lay aside, def. 2.

Example Sentences

But GMP said new information had led officers back to the lay-by for a fresh search this week.

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Driving home from his last shift down the pit, as Britain's coal industry withered away, Don Keating pulled into a lay-by and cried.

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A man who murdered his ex-girlfriend during an argument and dumped her body in a lay-by near the M1 motorway has been jailed for a minimum of 17 years.

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Police looking for the body of a woman who was murdered by her husband in a "pre-planned honour killing" ten years ago have begun a "detailed search" of a lay-by, a force has said.

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The driver then stopped in a lay-by and called the police, the prosecutor said.

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