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Synonyms

lay in

British  

verb

  1. (tr, adverb) to accumulate and store

    we must lay in food for the party

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

lay in Idioms  
  1. Also, lay up. Stock or store for future use, as in We laid in supplies for the winter, or Are you sure you've laid up enough material? The first term dates from the late 1500s, the second from about 1400. Also see lay aside, def. 2; lay down, def. 4.


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.

When asked what lay in store for the Masters gnome Augusta chairman Fred Ridley was coy in his response.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

Vance made it clear that the administration’s interests lay in the country’s vast oil reserves.

From Salon • Mar. 31, 2026

The ad's originality lay in the fact it did not directly show off the product, but instead promised a new world of emancipation for consumers thanks to home computers.

From Barron's • Mar. 29, 2026

“All the sweets and all the terrors of human lot lay in his mind,” Emerson writes, “as truly but as softly as the landscape lies on the eye.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 24, 2026

Night after night we lay in bed listening to the growl of engines heading west.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

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