as in to store
to put (something of future use or value) in a safe or secret place
be sure to lay in enough food for the long Alaska winter
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of lay in
The first image shows Pumpkin laying in the grass as a young pup, with her ears folding forward and down like normal.
—
Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Sep. 2025
According to scholar Nadia Margolis, the key to Christine’s success with her various projects lay in her acute awareness of existing in a men’s world with a dramatically unfair power imbalance.
—Emily Zarevich, JSTOR Daily, 23 Sep. 2025
When Nelson got up again, almost 40 shell casings lay in the street.
—Chicago Tribune, 12 Aug. 2025
The real challenge lay in the mental aspects, the steep learning curve of a new sport.
—Sindiswa Mabunda, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lay in
Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Sep. 2025
According to scholar Nadia Margolis, the key to Christine’s success with her various projects lay in her acute awareness of existing in a men’s world with a dramatically unfair power imbalance.
—Emily Zarevich, JSTOR Daily, 23 Sep. 2025
When Nelson got up again, almost 40 shell casings lay in the street.
—Chicago Tribune, 12 Aug. 2025
The real challenge lay in the mental aspects, the steep learning curve of a new sport.
—Sindiswa Mabunda, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lay in
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lay in
Verb
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These tiny plastic pieces emerge as bottles are made, stored, transported and broken down, and shed particles when they’re manipulated and exposed to sunlight or temperature changes, experts cautioned.—
Angelica Stabile,
FOXNews.com,
9 Oct. 2025
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Some startups are turning these advances into real technologies – from storing gases more safely, to pulling clean water straight from desert air, to building more energy-efficient air conditioners.—
Stavroula Alina Kampouri,
The Conversation,
9 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The flap that folds out at the front has a zippered mesh pouch for stashing your charging cables and electronic accessories, and on the outside of the bag are even more additional pockets.—
Olivia Young,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Oct. 2025
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Every child picked up their own fork and started to stash mac and cheese into their mouth, more than half of it ending up on the floor.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 Oct. 2025
Verb
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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
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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
Video
Lay vs. Lie
Editor Emily Brewster clarifies the difference.
Cite this Entry
“Lay in.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lay%20in. Accessed 16 Oct. 2025.
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