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

• store
• lay in
• stash
• lay by

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

Curry punctuated the night with a coast-to-coast layup to put the Warriors up by eight, followed by his signature night-night celebration with under a minute left. —Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 24 Oct. 2025

The Celtics retained possession after the unsuccessful layup. —Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 23 Oct. 2025

Verb

Adult female flies can lay up to 400 eggs at a time, and each larva in a human patient has to be physically dug out from infected flesh. —Jon Brodkin, ArsTechnica, 25 Aug. 2025

Walking up the eighteenth hole, Woad laid up into the par-5 finisher before sticking a 3/4 wedge to 2 feet to seal the tournament. —Mike Fore, Forbes.com, 27 July 2025

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