layup

1 of 2

noun

lay·​up ˈlā-ˌəp 

1

: the action of laying up or the condition of being laid up

2

: a shot in basketball made from near the basket usually by playing the ball off the backboard

lay up

2 of 2

verb

laid up; laying up; lays up

transitive verb

1

: to store up : lay by

2

: to disable or confine with illness or injury

a knee injury laid him up for a week

3

: to take out of active service

Synonyms

Verb

• cache
• hoard
• lay away
• lay by
• lay in
• put by
• salt away
• squirrel (away)
• stash
• stockpile
• store
• stow
• treasure

Examples of layup in a Sentence

Verb

an eating disorder that would impel her to lay up candy bars in her closet for all-night food binges

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Bilodeau made an early case as the team’s most skilled offensive player, the transfer from Oregon State scoring his team’s first seven points on a reverse layup, another layup and a three-pointer while falling down. —Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2024

Jones came up big for the Liberty after getting a steal and hitting a layup to tie the game at 93-93 with less than 25 seconds left in the overtime period. —Jacob Lev, CNN, 11 Oct. 2024

Verb

The organization’s improved breed of dual-purpose chickens, which are bred at local production sites, outperform indigenous breeds by growing faster, laying up to three times more eggs, and showing greater resistance to disease. —Daphne Ewing-Chow, Forbes, 11 Oct. 2024

Others are laid up with fever, cough, and fatigue for days or weeks. —Arthur Allen | Kff Health News, ABC News, 26 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1845, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

layup

1 of 2 noun

lay·​up ˈlā-ˌəp 

: a basketball shot made from near the basket usually by bouncing the ball off the backboard

lay up

2 of 2 verb

1

: to store up

2

: to disable or confine with illness or injury

a knee injury laid her up for a week

3

: to take out of active service