as in to ambush
to lie in wait for and attack by surprise
a lonely stretch of highway along which unsuspecting tourists are often waylaid by gangs
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Recent Examples of waylay
In one video that drew more than 700,000 views, Vargas waylaid ICE agents who were about to transport an elderly man to a detention center.
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Thomas Westerholm, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 July 2025
But what was expected to pass the lower chamber with relative ease on July 17 has been waylaid by other, unrelated legislative debates, including growing calls to release the Jeffrey Epstein case files.
—Savannah Kuchar, USA Today, 18 July 2025
Then again, Joel also waylaid band members (like drummer Liberty DeVitto, still somewhat embittered about the way he was cast aside during the making of River of Dreams) and loyal producer, Phil Ramone, after deciding to move on from them later in his life.
—David Browne, Rolling Stone, 18 July 2025
During the years following the mail bomb threat, Harold had also begun an intensive self-defence training regimen partly as a way of waylaying his debilitating state of constant paranoia.
—Hazlitt, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for waylay
Thomas Westerholm, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 July 2025
But what was expected to pass the lower chamber with relative ease on July 17 has been waylaid by other, unrelated legislative debates, including growing calls to release the Jeffrey Epstein case files.
—Savannah Kuchar, USA Today, 18 July 2025
Then again, Joel also waylaid band members (like drummer Liberty DeVitto, still somewhat embittered about the way he was cast aside during the making of River of Dreams) and loyal producer, Phil Ramone, after deciding to move on from them later in his life.
—David Browne, Rolling Stone, 18 July 2025
During the years following the mail bomb threat, Harold had also begun an intensive self-defence training regimen partly as a way of waylaying his debilitating state of constant paranoia.
—Hazlitt, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for waylay
Recent Examples of Synonyms for waylay
Verb
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Clinton Brink was first ambushed by McGann, police said, and after witnessing the attack, Cristen Brink ran away with her daughters, ages 7 and 9.—
Alisha Ebrahimji,
CNN Money,
14 Aug. 2025
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After his team, The Opps, successfully defended their Trios Titles, they were ambushed by the Death Riders faction.—
Andrew Ravens,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The Vera Institute's advocacy arm Vera Action, for example, assessed that the the GOP spent more than $1 billion attacking Democrats on crime and immigration in 2024, while Democrats spent roughly $319 million on advertisements that played up their public safety records.—
Francesca Chambers,
USA Today,
15 Aug. 2025
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Cardi also dropped a trailer for the album, showing her inside a house as crows swarm and attack her mansion.—
Tomás Mier,
Rolling Stone,
15 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Waylay.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/waylay. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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