The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lay \Lay\, v. i.
   1. To produce and deposit eggs.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. (Naut.) To take a position; to come or go; as, to lay
      forward; to lay aloft.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. To lay a wager; to bet.
      [1913 Webster]

   To lay about, or To lay about one, to strike vigorously
      in all directions. --J. H. Newman.

   To lay at, to strike or strike at. --Spenser.

   To lay for, to prepare to capture or assault; to lay wait
      for. [Colloq.] --Bp Hall.

   To lay in for, to make overtures for; to engage or secure
      the possession of. [Obs.] "I have laid in for these."
      --Dryden.

   To lay on, to strike; to beat; to attack. --Shak.

   To lay out, to purpose; to plan; as, he lays out to make a
      journey.
      [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lay \Lay\, n.
   1. That which lies or is laid or is conceived of as having
      been laid or placed in its position; a row; a stratum; a
      layer; as, a lay of stone or wood. --Addison.
      [1913 Webster]

            A viol should have a lay of wire strings below.
                                                  --Bacon.
      [1913 Webster]

   Note: The lay of a rope is right-handed or left-handed
         according to the hemp or strands are laid up. See
         Lay, v. t., 16. The lay of land is its topographical
         situation, esp. its slope and its surface features.
         [1913 Webster]

   2. A wager. "My fortunes against any lay worth naming."
      [1913 Webster]

   3.
      (a) A job, price, or profit. [Prov. Eng.] --Wright.
      (b) A share of the proceeds or profits of an enterprise;
          as, when a man ships for a whaling voyage, he agrees
          for a certain lay. [U. S.]
          [1913 Webster]

   4. (Textile Manuf.)
      (a) A measure of yarn; a lea. See 1st Lea
      (a) .
      (b) The lathe of a loom. See Lathe, 3.
          [1913 Webster]

   5. A plan; a scheme. [Slang] --Dickens.
      [1913 Webster]

   Lay figure.
      (a) A jointed model of the human body that may be put in
          any attitude; -- used for showing the disposition of
          drapery, etc.
      (b) A mere puppet; one who serves the will of others
          without independent volition.

   Lay race, that part of a lay on which the shuttle travels
      in weaving; -- called also shuttle race.

   the lay of the land, the general situation or state of
      affairs.

   to get the lay of the land, to learn the general situation
      or state of affairs, especially in preparation for action.
      [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:


[1913 Webster]

   3. The movable swing frame of a loom, carrying the reed for
      separating the warp threads and beating up the weft; --
      called also lay and batten.
      [1913 Webster]

   Blanchard lathe, a lathe for turning irregular forms after
      a given pattern, as lasts, gunstocks, and the like.

   Drill lathe, or Speed lathe, a small lathe which, from
      its high speed, is adapted for drilling; a hand lathe.

   Engine lathe, a turning lathe in which the cutting tool has
      an automatic feed; -- used chiefly for turning and boring
      metals, cutting screws, etc.

   Foot lathe, a lathe which is driven by a treadle worked by
      the foot.

   Geometric lathe. See under Geometric

   Hand lathe, a lathe operated by hand; a power turning lathe
      without an automatic feed for the tool.

   Slide lathe, an engine lathe.

   Throw lathe, a small lathe worked by one hand, while the
      cutting tool is held in the other.
      [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lay \Lay\ (l[=a]), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Laid (l[=a]d); p. pr. &
   vb. n. Laying.] [OE. leggen, AS. lecgan, causative, fr.
   licgan to lie; akin to D. leggen, G. legen, Icel. leggja,
   Goth. lagjan. See Lie to be prostrate.]
   1. To cause to lie down, to be prostrate, or to lie against
      something; to put or set down; to deposit; as, to lay a
      book on the table; to lay a body in the grave; a shower
      lays the dust.
      [1913 Webster]

            A stone was brought, and laid upon the mouth of the
            den.                                  --Dan. vi. 17.
      [1913 Webster]

            Soft on the flowery herb I found me laid. --Milton.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. To place in position; to establish firmly; to arrange with
      regularity; to dispose in ranks or tiers; as, to lay a
      corner stone; to lay bricks in a wall; to lay the covers
      on a table.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. To prepare; to make ready; to contrive; to provide; as, to
      lay a snare, an ambush, or a plan.
      [1913 Webster]

   4. To spread on a surface; as, to lay plaster or paint.
      [1913 Webster]

   5. To cause to be still; to calm; to allay; to suppress; to
      exorcise, as an evil spirit.
      [1913 Webster]

            After a tempest when the winds are laid. --Waller.
      [1913 Webster]

   6. To cause to lie dead or dying.
      [1913 Webster]

            Brave C[ae]neus laid Ortygius on the plain,
            The victor C[ae]neus was by Turnus slain. --Dryden.
      [1913 Webster]

   7. To deposit, as a wager; to stake; to risk.
      [1913 Webster]

            I dare lay mine honor
            He will remain so.                    --Shak.
      [1913 Webster]

   8. To bring forth and deposit; as, to lay eggs.
      [1913 Webster]

   9. To apply; to put.
      [1913 Webster]

            She layeth her hands to the spindle.  --Prov. xxxi.
                                                  19.
      [1913 Webster]

   10. To impose, as a burden, suffering, or punishment; to
       assess, as a tax; as, to lay a tax on land.
       [1913 Webster]

             The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
                                                  --Is. liii. 6.
       [1913 Webster]

   11. To impute; to charge; to allege.
       [1913 Webster]

             God layeth not folly to them.        --Job xxiv.
                                                  12.
       [1913 Webster]

             Lay the fault on us.                 --Shak.
       [1913 Webster]

   12. To impose, as a command or a duty; as, to lay commands on
       one.
       [1913 Webster]

   13. To present or offer; as, to lay an indictment in a
       particular county; to lay a scheme before one.
       [1913 Webster]

   14. (Law) To state; to allege; as, to lay the venue.
       --Bouvier.
       [1913 Webster]

   15. (Mil.) To point; to aim; as, to lay a gun.
       [1913 Webster]

   16. (Rope Making) To put the strands of (a rope, a cable,
       etc.) in their proper places and twist or unite them; as,
       to lay a cable or rope.
       [1913 Webster]

   17. (Print.)
       (a) To place and arrange (pages) for a form upon the
           imposing stone.
       (b) To place (new type) properly in the cases.
           [1913 Webster]

   To lay asleep, to put sleep; to make unobservant or
      careless. --Bacon.

   To lay bare, to make bare; to strip.
      [1913 Webster]

            And laid those proud roofs bare to summer's rain.
                                                  --Byron.

   To lay before, to present to; to submit for consideration;
      as, the papers are laid before Congress.

   To lay by.
       (a) To save.
       (b) To discard.
           [1913 Webster]

                 Let brave spirits . . . not be laid by.
                                                  --Bacon.

   To lay by the heels, to put in the stocks. --Shak.

   To lay down.
       (a) To stake as a wager.
       (b) To yield; to relinquish; to surrender; as, to lay
           down one's life; to lay down one's arms.
       (c) To assert or advance, as a proposition or principle.


   To lay forth.
       (a) To extend at length; (reflexively) to exert one's
           self; to expatiate. [Obs.]
       (b) To lay out (as a corpse). [Obs.] --Shak.

   To lay hands on, to seize.

   To lay hands on one's self, or To lay violent hands on
   one's self, to injure one's self; specif., to commit
      suicide.

   To lay heads together, to consult.

   To lay hold of, or To lay hold on, to seize; to catch.

   To lay in, to store; to provide.

   To lay it on, to apply without stint. --Shak.

   To lay it on thick, to flatter excessively.

   To lay on, to apply with force; to inflict; as, to lay on
      blows.

   To lay on load, to lay on blows; to strike violently. [Obs.
      or Archaic]

   To lay one's self out, to strive earnestly.
      [1913 Webster]

            No selfish man will be concerned to lay out himself
            for the good of his country.          --Smalridge.
      [1913 Webster]

   To lay one's self open to, to expose one's self to, as to
      an accusation.

   To lay open, to open; to uncover; to expose; to reveal.

   To lay over, to spread over; to cover.

   To lay out.
       (a) To expend. --Macaulay.
       (b) To display; to discover.
       (c) To plan in detail; to arrange; as, to lay out a
           garden.
       (d) To prepare for burial; as, to lay out a corpse.
       (e) To exert; as, to lay out all one's strength.

   To lay siege to.
       (a) To besiege; to encompass with an army.
       (b) To beset pertinaciously.

   To lay the course (Naut.), to sail toward the port intended
      without jibing.

   To lay the land (Naut.), to cause it to disappear below the
      horizon, by sailing away from it.

   To lay to
       (a) To charge upon; to impute.
       (b) To apply with vigor.
       (c) To attack or harass. [Obs.] --Knolles.
       (d) (Naut.) To check the motion of (a vessel) and cause
           it to be stationary.

   To lay to heart, to feel deeply; to consider earnestly.

   To lay under, to subject to; as, to lay under obligation or
      restraint.

   To lay unto.
       (a) Same as To lay to (above).
       (b) To put before. --Hos. xi. 4.

   To lay up.
       (a) To store; to reposit for future use.
       (b) To confine; to disable.
       (c) To dismantle, and retire from active service, as a
           ship.

   To lay wait for, to lie in ambush for.

   To lay waste, to destroy; to make desolate; as, to lay
      waste the land.
      [1913 Webster]

   Syn: See Put, v. t., and the Note under 4th Lie.
        [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lay \Lay\, n.
   The laity; the common people. [Obs.]
   [1913 Webster]

         The learned have no more privilege than the lay. --B.
                                                  Jonson.
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lay \Lay\, n.
   A meadow. See Lea. [Obs.] --Dryden.
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lay \Lay\, n. [OF. lei faith, law, F. loi law. See Legal.]
   1. Faith; creed; religious profession. [Obs.]
      [1913 Webster]

            Of the sect to which that he was born
            He kept his lay, to which that he was sworn.
                                                  --Chaucer.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. A law. [Obs.] "Many goodly lays." --Spenser.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. An obligation; a vow. [Obs.]
      [1913 Webster]

            They bound themselves by a sacred lay and oath.
                                                  --Holland.
      [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lay \Lay\, imp.
   of Lie, to recline.
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lay \Lay\, a. [F. lai, L. laicus, Gr. ? of or from the people,
   lay, from ?, ?, people. Cf. Laic.]
   1. Of or pertaining to the laity, as distinct from the
      clergy; as, a lay person; a lay preacher; a lay brother.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. Not educated or cultivated; ignorant. [Obs.]
      [1913 Webster]

   3. Not belonging to, or emanating from, a particular
      profession; unprofessional; as, a lay opinion regarding
      the nature of a disease.
      [1913 Webster]

   Lay baptism (Eccl.), baptism administered by a lay person.
      --F. G. Lee.

   Lay brother (R. C. Ch.), one received into a convent of
      monks under the three vows, but not in holy orders.

   Lay clerk (Eccl.), a layman who leads the responses of the
      congregation, etc., in the church service. --Hook.

   Lay days (Com.), time allowed in a charter party for taking
      in and discharging cargo. --McElrath.

   Lay elder. See 2d Elder, 3, note.
      [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lay \Lay\, a. [OF. lai, lais, prob. of Celtic origin; cf. Ir.
   laoi, laoidh, song, poem, OIr. laoidh poem, verse; but cf.
   also AS. l[=a]c play, sport, G. leich a sort of poem (cf.
   Lake to sport). ?.]
   1. A song; a simple lyrical poem; a ballad. --Spenser. Sir W.
      Scott.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. A melody; any musical utterance.
      [1913 Webster]

            The throstle cock made eke his lay.   --Chaucer.
      [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lie \Lie\, v. i. [imp. Lay (l[=a]); p. p. Lain (l[=a]n),
   (Lien (l[imac]"[e^]n), Obs.); p. pr. & vb. n. Lying.]
   [OE. lien, liggen, AS. licgan; akin to D. liggen, OHG. ligen,
   licken, G. liegen, Icel. liggja, Sw. ligga, Dan. ligge, Goth.
   ligan, Russ. lejate, L. lectus bed, Gr. le`chos bed,
   le`xasqai to lie. Cf. Lair, Law, Lay, v. t., Litter,
   Low, adj.]
   1. To rest extended on the ground, a bed, or any support; to
      be, or to put one's self, in an horizontal position, or
      nearly so; to be prostate; to be stretched out; -- often
      with down, when predicated of living creatures; as, the
      book lies on the table; the snow lies on the roof; he lies
      in his coffin.
      [1913 Webster]

            The watchful traveler . . .
            Lay down again, and closed his weary eyes. --Dryden.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. To be situated; to occupy a certain place; as, Ireland
      lies west of England; the meadows lie along the river; the
      ship lay in port.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. To abide; to remain for a longer or shorter time; to be in
      a certain state or condition; as, to lie waste; to lie
      fallow; to lie open; to lie hid; to lie grieving; to lie
      under one's displeasure; to lie at the mercy of the waves;
      the paper does not lie smooth on the wall.
      [1913 Webster]

   4. To be or exist; to belong or pertain; to have an abiding
      place; to consist; -- with in.
      [1913 Webster]

            Envy lies between beings equal in nature, though
            unequal in circumstances.             --Collier.
      [1913 Webster]

            He that thinks that diversion may not lie in hard
            labor, forgets the early rising and hard riding of
            huntsmen.                             --Locke.
      [1913 Webster]

   5. To lodge; to sleep.
      [1913 Webster]

            Whiles I was now trifling at home, I saw London, . .
            . where I lay one night only.         --Evelyn.
      [1913 Webster]

            Mr. Quinion lay at our house that night. --Dickens.
      [1913 Webster]

   6. To be still or quiet, like one lying down to rest.
      [1913 Webster]

            The wind is loud and will not lie.    --Shak.
      [1913 Webster]

   7. (Law) To be sustainable; to be capable of being
      maintained. "An appeal lies in this case." --Parsons.
      [1913 Webster]

   Note: Through ignorance or carelessness speakers and writers
         often confuse the forms of the two distinct verbs lay
         and lie. Lay is a transitive verb, and has for its
         preterit laid; as, he told me to lay it down, and I
         laid it down. Lie is intransitive, and has for its
         preterit lay; as, he told me to lie down, and I lay
         down. Some persons blunder by using laid for the
         preterit of lie; as, he told me to lie down, and I laid
         down. So persons often say incorrectly, the ship laid
         at anchor; they laid by during the storm; the book was
         laying on the shelf, etc. It is only necessary to
         remember, in all such cases, that laid is the preterit
         of lay, and not of lie.
         [1913 Webster]

   To lie along the shore (Naut.), to coast, keeping land in
      sight.

   To lie at the door of, to be imputable to; as, the sin,
      blame, etc., lies at your door.

   To lie at the heart, to be an object of affection, desire,
      or anxiety. --Sir W. Temple.

   To lie at the mercy of, to be in the power of.

   To lie by.
      (a) To remain with; to be at hand; as, he has the
          manuscript lying by him.
      (b) To rest; to intermit labor; as, we lay by during the
          heat of the day.

   To lie hard or To lie heavy, to press or weigh; to bear
      hard.

   To lie in, to be in childbed; to bring forth young.

   To lie in one, to be in the power of; to belong to. "As
      much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men." --Rom.
      xii. 18.

   To lie in the way, to be an obstacle or impediment.

   To lie in wait, to wait in concealment; to lie in ambush.


   To lie on or To lie upon.
      (a) To depend on; as, his life lies on the result.
      (b) To bear, rest, press, or weigh on.

   To lie low, to remain in concealment or inactive. [Slang]


   To lie on hand,

   To lie on one's hands, to remain unsold or unused; as, the
      goods are still lying on his hands; they have too much
      time lying on their hands.

   To lie on the head of, to be imputed to.
      [1913 Webster]

            What he gets more of her than sharp words, let it
            lie on my head.                       --Shak.
      [1913 Webster]

   To lie over.
      (a) To remain unpaid after the time when payment is due,
          as a note in bank.
      (b) To be deferred to some future occasion, as a
          resolution in a public deliberative body.

   To lie to (Naut.), to stop or delay; especially, to head as
      near the wind as possible as being the position of
      greatest safety in a gale; -- said of a ship. Cf. To
      bring to, under Bring.

   To lie under, to be subject to; to suffer; to be oppressed
      by.

   To lie with.
      (a) To lodge or sleep with.
      (b) To have sexual intercourse with.
      (c) To belong to; as, it lies with you to make amends.
          [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

lay
    adj 1: characteristic of those who are not members of the
           clergy; "set his collar in laic rather than clerical
           position"; "the lay ministry" [syn: laic, lay,
           secular]
    2: not of or from a profession; "a lay opinion as to the cause
       of the disease"
    n 1: a narrative song with a recurrent refrain [syn: ballad,
         lay]
    2: a narrative poem of popular origin [syn: ballad, lay]
    v 1: put into a certain place or abstract location; "Put your
         things here"; "Set the tray down"; "Set the dogs on the
         scent of the missing children"; "Place emphasis on a
         certain point" [syn: put, set, place, pose,
         position, lay]
    2: put in a horizontal position; "lay the books on the table";
       "lay the patient carefully onto the bed" [syn: lay, put
       down, repose]
    3: prepare or position for action or operation; "lay a fire";
       "lay the foundation for a new health care plan"
    4: lay eggs; "This hen doesn't lay"
    5: impose as a duty, burden, or punishment; "lay a
       responsibility on someone"

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

390 Moby Thesaurus words for "lay":
   Brautlied, Christmas carol, Kunstlied, Liebeslied, Volkslied,
   abate, accredit, address, advance, aim, air, alba, align, allay,
   allege, alleviate, anesthetize, ante, ante up, anthem, appease,
   aria, art song, aspect, assign, assuage, attemper, attitude,
   attribute, aubade, azimuth, back, ball, ballad, ballade, ballata,
   bank the fire, barcarole, be intimate, bearing, bearings, bent,
   benumb, bet, bet on, blues, blues song, blunt, board, boat song,
   boom, bridal hymn, brindisi, burden with, call, calm, calypso,
   canso, canticle, canto, cantus, canzone, canzonet, canzonetta,
   carol, cast, cast loose, cast out devils, cavatina,
   celestial navigation, chanson, chant, chantey, charge, chasten,
   cite, civil, clap on ratlines, clear hawse, cohabit, come together,
   commit adultery, conciliate, congregational, constrain, control,
   cool, copulate, couple, course, cover, crawl, credit, croon,
   croon song, current, cushion, cut loose, dab, damp, dampen,
   de-emphasize, dead reckoning, deaden, deaden the pain, defuse,
   demand, deposit, descant, diapason, diddle, diminish, direction,
   direction line, dirge, ditty, downplay, drag, dress, drift,
   drinking song, drop, dub, dulcify, dull, ease, ease matters,
   enjoin, epithalamium, equalize, establish, even, exact, exorcise,
   exposure, extenuate, fade, fasten upon, fell, fix, flatten, flush,
   folk song, foment, fornicate, freight with, frig, frontage, gamble,
   game, give relief, grade, grease, grovel, harrow, haul, haul down,
   have sex, have sexual relations, hazard, heading, heave,
   heave apeak, heave round, heave short, helmsmanship, hymeneal,
   hymn, impose, impose on, impose upon, impute, inclination, incline,
   inflict on, inflict upon, kedge, keep within bounds, laic, laical,
   lay a wager, lay aloft, lay down, lay flat, lay ghosts, lay level,
   lay low, lay on, lay out, lay the dust, lenify, lessen, level,
   levy, lie, lie down, lie flat, lie limply, lie prone,
   lie prostrate, lie with, lied, lighten, lilt, line,
   line of direction, line of march, line of position, lodge, log,
   loll, lounge, love song, love-lilt, lubricate, lull, make a bet,
   make it with, make love, make out, mate, matin, measure,
   meet a bet, melodia, melodic line, melody, minstrel song,
   minstrelsy, mitigate, moderate, modulate, mollify, mount, mow,
   national anthem, navigation, nonclerical, nonecclesiastical,
   nonministerial, nonordained, nonpastoral, nonreligious, note, numb,
   obtund, offer, oil, orientation, pacify, pad, palliate, park,
   parlay, pass, pilotage, piloting, placate, place, plane, planish,
   plaster, play, play against, play down, plunge, point, pose, posit,
   position, position line, post, poultice, pour balm into,
   pour balm on, pour oil on, present, propitiate, prothalamium, punt,
   put, put down, put on, put upon, quarter, radio bearing, range,
   rase, ratline down, raze, recline, reduce, reduce the temperature,
   refer, refrain, relieve, repose, reposit, rest, restrain, roll,
   roll flat, run, saddle with, salve, screw, seat, secular,
   secularist, secularistic, see, serena, serenade, serenata, serve,
   service, set, set down, settle, shave, slacken, slake, sleep with,
   slow down, smooth, smooth down, smooth out, smooth over, smoothen,
   smother, sober, sober down, soften, solo, solo part, song, soothe,
   soprano part, spar down, spawn, sprawl, spread, stake, stand pat,
   station, steamroll, steamroller, steerage, steering, stick, stifle,
   strain, stream the log, stupe, subdue, subject to, submit,
   suppress, tame, task, tax, temper, temporal, tendency, tenor,
   theme song, tone down, torch song, track, train, tranquilize,
   traverse a yard, treble, trend, tune, tune down, turn, underplay,
   unlash, unsacred, unspell, wager, war song, warble, warp, way,
   weaken, wedding song, weight down with, yoke with



Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856):

LAY, English law. That which relates to persons or things not
ecclesiastical. In the United States the people are not, by law, divided, as
in England, into ecclesiastical and lay. The law makes no distinction
between them.