lay down

British  

verb

1. to place on the ground, etc

2. to relinquish or discard

   to lay down one's life

3. to formulate (a rule, principle, etc)

4. to build or begin to build

   the railway was laid down as far as Manchester

5. to record (plans) on paper

6. to convert (land) into pasture

7. to store or stock

   to lay down wine

8. informal to wager or bet

9. informal (tr, adverb) to record (tracks) in a studio

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lay down Idioms  

1. Give something up, surrender, as in They laid down their arms . [c. 1300]

2. Formulate, specify, as in The club laid down new membership rules . [Late 1400s]

3. Also, lay down one's life . Sacrifice one's life, as in He would willingly lay down his life for his children . [c. 1600]

4. Store for the future, as in It was a great vintage year for burgundy, and Mark laid down several cases . [Early 1800s] Also see lay aside , def. 2.

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Example Sentences

They just lay down on the deck and covered themselves with blankets.

From Literature

Separately, the partnership with Florida Atlantic University appears to be part of a bigger move to lay down roots in the state.

From Barron's

He lay down across the track lines and looked up at the sky.

From Literature

Then nearly every protest participant lay down on the steps of City Hall, many with eyes shut and clutching their signs to their chests, for 290 seconds.

From Los Angeles Times

And at one point, animal care assistant Chloe Abbott even donned a green blanket and lay down in the field hoping she would "blend in with the grass" and the pigs would approach her.

From BBC

Related Words

• abandon
• back down
• back off
• backtrack
• depart
• escape
• evacuate
• fall back
• go
• go back
• hide
• leave
• pull out
• recede
• reel
• retire
• reverse
• shrink
• withdraw