1
as in to dump
to get rid of as useless or unwanted
a politician who had laid by his principles years ago
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to store
to put (something of future use or value) in a safe or secret place
ever since the last hurricane caught them unprepared, they have laid by emergency supplies
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lay by
Verb
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Somewhere beyond the brush, two frightened dogs — caught on video being dumped and abandoned — were still waiting, as if the person who left them might return.—
Ashley Vega,
PEOPLE,
7 Nov. 2025 -
Drone footage showed catastrophic flooding that turned streets into rivers, submerged homes and overturned cars as Typhoon Kalmaegi, known locally as Tino, dumped more than a month’s worth of rain in only 24 hours in some areas.—
Helen Regan,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Rather than storing all of your cleaning supplies in one central cabinet, use a caddy to keep some cleaning supplies and tools in each bathroom.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
The Spruce,
10 Jan. 2026
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Instead of storing the marbles from your childhood in a bin in your closet, put them in a jar on your bookshelf.—
Tessa Cooper,
Better Homes & Gardens,
10 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Reserve the smooth strained mixture and discard any solids.—
Karla Walsh,
Better Homes & Gardens,
8 Nov. 2025
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Health inspectors cite the bagel shop after the half-and-half at the customer self-service counter was not discarded at the appropriate time.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Another affinity between the Romanians and the Iraqis lay in the fact that both knew the difficulties of living under a dictatorship.—
Alissa Simon,
Variety,
9 Jan. 2026
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Everyone knew what future lay in store for the bottom 10 percent.—
George Packer,
The Atlantic,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Shortly after the pursuit began, the suspects ditched the car in the 11100 block of Archwood Place and ran away from the officers.—
Matthew Rodriguez,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
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That includes a public stop at a Florida Steak ‘n Shake in March after the chain ditched vegetable oil for beef tallow.—
Aria Bendix,
NBC news,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Best to keep backups of all of that data stashed, cached, and out of harm’s way—and space makes an ideal safe deposit box.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
7 Jan. 2026
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Various zippered pockets inside the front flap are great for stashing smaller essentials, and a front pocket can fit a 13-inch laptop.—
Sophie Dodd,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The mass of public officials and volunteers unloaded and passed about 1,200 turkeys into the food bank Thursday morning in a lively assembly line.—
Grace Zokovitch,
Boston Herald,
7 Nov. 2025
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Carol Burnett has unloaded a massive haul of her most coveted awards, handing them off to her alma mater in conjunction with an endowment to support aspiring musical theater performers.—
Karu F Daniels,
Mercury News,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The only time the Fitzgerald made it to its homeport of Milwaukee was when the ship was laid up during the 1959 steel strike, from June to October.—
Caitlin Looby,
jsonline.com,
4 Nov. 2025
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Female moths can lay up to 500 eggs at a time.7 Pantry moths are most destructive in their larval stage, so discouraging this stage will help prevent the infestation from spreading.—
Lauren Wicks,
Southern Living,
28 Oct. 2025
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Lay vs. Lie
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
Cite this Entry
“Lay by.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lay%20by. Accessed 10 Jan. 2026.
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