as in stops
to bring (as an action or operation) to an immediate end
you need to lay off eating those jelly doughnuts, or you'll end up looking like one
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lays off
Verb
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To begin with, their source data on funding priorities stops at 2007, leaving a roughly 15-year gap where research funding can't be analyzed, but patents are still being filed.—
John Timmer,
ArsTechnica,
25 Sep. 2025 -
There was an awkward pause before the couple did what everyone does when an escalator stops escalating.—
Chris Brennan,
USA Today,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Without any of the three, money once again ceases to circulate.—
John Tamny,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
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Some of the details may subtly shift between each retelling, but the story always remains the same and never ceases to grab attention.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Louisville lawmakers have passed an ordinance that ends permit requirements for some protests — an effort led by a Republican council member who has in the past called out Mayor Craig Greenberg's administration for not enforcing the city's permitting rules.—
Killian Baarlaer,
Louisville Courier Journal,
26 Sep. 2025
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With durable designs and timeless style, these pieces will make holiday cooking easier — and continue to serve you long after the season ends.—
Toni Sutton,
PEOPLE,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
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At one point our conversation halts as Bailey gestures toward the window, where two men stroll past arm in arm.—
Olivia-Anne Cleary,
Time,
30 Sep. 2025
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Gun-toting Henry halts the escaping car and holds the nefarious trio at gunpoint.—
Bryan Alexander,
USA Today,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
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For males, this means a vasectomy, which is a surgical procedure that cuts off the supply of sperm to the semen.—
Kelly Burch Published,
Verywell Health,
15 Sep. 2025
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As cable loses subscribers, that inherently cuts off access to networks like TNT.—
John Cassillo,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The fragmentary Ni 12501 tablet from the Early Dynastic III period of Mesopotamia breaks off when Fox deceives the inhabitants of the netherworld in his quest to retrieve the storm god Ishkur.—
Rafil Kroll-Zaidi,
Harpers Magazine,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The defroster and defogger system shuts off during certain HVAC system faults, such as electrical compressor failure, due to the programming of the HVAC and ECU software, according to the recall report.—
James Powel,
USA Today,
15 Sep. 2025
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The communication system shuts off 15 seconds before the play clock expires.—
Omar Kelly,
Miami Herald,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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After the death of her boyfriend, Atlanta singer Ruth (Serayah McNeill) quits her hip-hop group, moves to Tennessee and gets a job harvesting grapes.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
26 Sep. 2025
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The WIldcats were outscored 138-14 over their first two games before calling it quits.—
John Maffei,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
24 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Lays off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lays%20off. Accessed 1 Oct. 2025.
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