layer

[ ley-er ]

/ ˈleɪ ər /

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See synonyms for: layer / layered / layering / layers on Thesaurus.com

noun

a thickness of some material laid on or spread over a surface: a layer of soot on the windowsill; two layers of paint.

something lying over or under something else; a level or tier: There can be multiple layers of metaphor in a single poem.

a bed; stratum: alternating layers of basalt and sandstone.

a person or thing that lays (often used in combination): a carpet layer;a bricklayer.

a hen kept for egg production.

one of several items of clothing worn one on top of the other.

Horticulture.

a shoot or twig that is induced to root while still attached to the living stock, as by bending and covering with soil.
a plant so propagated.

Ropemaking. a machine for laying rope or cable.

verb (used with object)

to make a layer of.

to form or arrange in layers.

to arrange or wear (clothing) in layers: You can layer this vest over a blouse or sweater.

to cut (hair) in overlapping layers of different lengths: My hairdresser insisted on layering my hair at my last visit—I rather like it this way.

Horticulture. to propagate by layering.

verb (used without object)

to separate into or form layers.

(of a garment) to permit of wearing in layers; be used in layering: Frilly blouses don't layer well.

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Origin of layer

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English leyer, legger; see origin at lay¹, -er¹

OTHER WORDS FROM layer

lay·er·a·ble, adjectivein·ter·lay·er, nounin·ter·lay·er, verb (used with object)non·lay·ered, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use layer in a sentence

The ultimate onesieInner layers are the most important part of a cold-resistant outfit.
The hottest gifts to buy for the friend who’s always cold|Sandra Gutierrez G.|November 20, 2020|Popular-Science
To understand how Trust Exercise does this work — and how the ending fits into it — let’s go through the whole book, layer by layer and part by part.
The mind-boggling end of Susan Choi’s Trust Exercise, explained|Constance Grady|November 20, 2020|Vox
The fact that the Minnesota Timberwolves and Golden State Warriors, the teams with the top two picks, are hoping to leap up the standings next season only adds another layer of complexity to the draft order.
On quiet night for NBA draft lottery selections, Anthony Edwards goes No. 1 to Timberwolves|Ben Golliver, Des Bieler|November 19, 2020|Washington Post
More massive boats require stronger shaking to resist being knocked down to the bottom of the container or up to the top of the liquid layer.
Readers ask about buoyancy, Stonehenge sounds and more|Science News Staff|November 15, 2020|Science News

It is important to note that while the granularity of the process, as well as the layers of security, form an effective shield of fraud protection, actual issues with mail-in ballots are vanishingly rare.
A Pennsylvania poll worker explains the painstaking process of counting votes|Kyle Brashear|November 12, 2020|Vox
Veselka layered its latke with pork goulash, and Toloache added beef short rib chorizo.
I Ate Potato Pancakes Til I Plotzed|Emily Shire|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Just like anyone else, black women are multi-layered, complex, different, and most importantly, they are not relational.
Lifetime’s ‘Girlfriend Intervention’: The Fairy Black Mothers TV Doesn’t Need|Phoebe Robinson|September 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Death masks are made from a cast of layered plaster strips laid on the face soon after death.
The Ukrainian Face Collector Launches an Exhibition in Kiev|Nina Strochlic|August 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Set on a mountaintop, the complex is layered, with platforms, walls, and other areas where people line up to watch those entering.
Fighting Back With Faith: Inside the Yezidis’ Iraqi Temple|Michael Luongo|August 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The moist rectangle of cooked meat and molten blob of cheese are then layered in a hard roll.
The Real Cheeseburger Paradise|Jane & Michael Stern|June 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Beyond the barrier, starlight revealed a cluster of rounding tombstones layered with white.
Ghost Beyond the Gate|Mildred A. Wirt
The two-layered young stage of higher creatures, when it has a free-swimming existence, is called a Gastrula (Fig. 6).
Stories of the Universe: Animal Life|B. Lindsay
And when they find it assuming a two-layered form, they say, "Its ancestors were two-layered creatures."
Stories of the Universe: Animal Life|B. Lindsay
Firstly, the description of them as two-layered Animals is one that only applies typically and to the simpler forms.
Stories of the Universe: Animal Life|B. Lindsay
It is first a one-layered larva, then a two-layered form, and then becomes a ciliated animal.
Stories of the Universe: Animal Life|B. Lindsay

British Dictionary definitions for layer

layer

/ (ˈleɪə) /

noun

a thickness of some homogeneous substance, such as a stratum or a coating on a surface

one of four or more levels of vegetation defined in ecological studies: the ground or moss layer, the field or herb layer, the shrub layer, and one or more tree layers

a laying hen

horticulture

a shoot or branch rooted during layering
a plant produced as a result of layering

verb

to form or make a layer of (something)

to take root or cause to take root by layering

Word Origin for layer

C14 leyer, legger, from lay 1 + -er 1

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

layer

Origin of layer

OTHER WORDS FROM layer

Words related to layer

How to use layer in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for layer

Word Origin for layer