lay person
Britishnoun
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a person who is not a member of the clergy
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a person who does not have specialized or professional knowledge of a subject
a lay person's guide to conveyancing
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.
The meaning is not something that a lay person can necessarily intuit.
From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2025
"These forms are really difficult to navigate as a lawyer, so for a lay person I can see how it would be quite terrifying," she added.
From BBC ● Mar. 13, 2025
"I also express my pain and shock over the killing in Mexico the day before yesterday of two religious brothers of mine, Jesuits, and one lay person," Francis said.
From Reuters ● Jun. 22, 2022
That’s another phrase that to the lay person may seem confusing.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 25, 2021
At Adana, the church, the school, and the residence of the Catholic Armenian bishop, with all the revenues attached thereto, became the prey of two individuals, a priest and a lay person.
From Pius IX. And His Time by Æneas MacDonell Dawson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
