1
as in to spread
to put a layer of on a surface
she lays the butter on so thickly that you hardly taste the bagel
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to employ
chiefly British
to provide with a paying job
lay on more staff for the busy tourist season in the Lake District
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lay on
Verb
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During a pre-launch hot-fire test, an anomaly in a single engine triggered a catastrophic fire that spread throughout the first stage.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Mar. 2026 -
The Board accused him of spreading misinformation about COVID-19, but moved to return his certification a few months later.—
Romy Ellenbogen,
Miami Herald,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Even high productivity numbers may not be enough to pay the government’s debts, and there will be many people unhappily and under-employed.—
Allison Schrager,
Twin Cities,
8 Mar. 2026
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Our member companies employ roughly 800,000 people across the city.—
Steven Fulop,
New York Daily News,
8 Mar. 2026
Verb
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And that word — dogfight — evokes two words that apply to a lot of the talk that came up often after Canadiens practice at Honda Center on Thursday.—
Arpon Basu,
New York Times,
6 Mar. 2026
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But in practice, this knowledge is often inaccessible or hard to apply to rural circumstances.—
Jonathan Lambert,
NPR,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Second, severe winter storms likely put a big damper on hiring in weather-sensitive industries like construction and leisure and hospitality.—
Alicia Wallace,
CNN Money,
6 Mar. 2026
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Mass layoffs in the tech industry started in 2022, after a hiring surge during the pandemic, when demand for online services increased as people were stuck at home.—
Queenie Wong,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
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While that same sun will always rise in the East and set in the West, the work of these artists affirms that each new day is ours to make anew — no matter what sorrows may lay behind us.—
Grant Klarich Johnson,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Mar. 2026
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After the Gators hit some free throws to extend their first-half lead to 26-19, Vitale started to lay into the Wildcats.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Even Self noted in his postgame radio interview that Saturday was the version of Peterson that KU recruited.—
Shreyas Laddha,
Kansas City Star,
8 Mar. 2026
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While working as a shopgirl, the young Evelyn is recruited as a studio model and soon catches the eye of the preeminent artists of the age.—
Danielle Parker,
CBS News,
8 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Grainy mustard smeared on a chunk of corned beef is delicious too.—
Tribune Content Agency,
Baltimore Sun,
4 Mar. 2026
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This helps remove dirt, dust, skin cells, pet hair, and other debris that could otherwise smear during the wet cleaning.—
Kate Van Pelt,
The Spruce,
3 Mar. 2026
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Lay vs. Lie
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
Cite this Entry
“Lay on.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lay%20on. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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