lay down

verb

laid down; laying down; lays down

transitive verb

1

: to give up : surrender

lay down your arms

2

a

: establish, prescribe

lay down a scale for a map

b

: to assert or command dogmatically

lay down the law

3

a

: store, preserve

laid down a young wine

b

: record

laying down songs for their new album

4

a

: to direct toward a target

lay down a barrage

b

: to hit along the ground

laid down a sacrifice bunt

intransitive verb

nonstandard : to lie down

Synonyms

• enact
• pass

Examples of lay down in a Sentence

the city council promises to lay down new ordinances that will force dog walkers to clean up after their animals

at the risk of their popularity, the parents laid down the rules for the party and wouldn't accept any arguments

Recent Examples on the Web

So after gathering all the adults who had tried to exert influence over the hybrids in a holding cell, Wendy laid down the new laws of the land while her Xenomorph and its chestburster youngling watched menacingly on. —Megan McCluskey, Time, 24 Sep. 2025

Use this energy to reclaim your space, tend to your inner child, and lay down new roots that are built on integrity, not illusion. —Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 21 Sep. 2025

My husband laid down his life for me, for our nation, for our children. —Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2025

The flat edge lays down product, the rounded side buffs and blends, and the precision tip gets into all the hard-to-reach areas like nostrils and lash lines. —Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for lay down

• adown
• blowdown
• breakdown
• countdown
• crackdown
• crosstown
• downtown
• drawdown
• dropdown
• facedown
• godown
• hometown

Video

Lay vs. Lie

Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.

Kids Definition

lay down

verb

1

: establish sense 1, prescribe

lay down standards

2

: to state or declare forcefully

lay down the law