Definition of the word lie1

Pronunciation of vocabulary lie1

lie1verb

lie1

/laɪ//laɪ/

Origin of the word lie1

Word OriginOld English licgan, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch liggen and German liegen, from an Indo-European root shared by Greek lektron, lekhos and Latin lectus ‘bed’.

Example of vocabulary lie1namespace

meaning

to be or put yourself in a flat position so that you are not standing or sitting

  • to lie on your back/side/front
  • She lay in bed listening to music.
  • Lie there for a bit until you feel better.
  • I lay awake all night worrying about it.
  • The cat was lying fast asleep by the fire.
Extra examples:
  • She likes to lie in bed all day.
  • He was lying next to his wife in bed.
  • I lay on the sofa reading my book.
  • I lay on the grass and fell asleep.
  • She wouldn't enjoy a holiday just lying on the beach.
  • A man lay dead in the middle of the road.
  • They found her lying in a pool of blood.
  • They found him lying unconscious at the foot of the stairs.
  • He fell on the floor and just lay there not moving.
  • Her body lay motionless on the bed.
  • Lying there listening to music, I felt at peace.
  • He just lay there smiling.
  • They stole her belongings while she lay helpless on the bed.
  • A sleeping dog lies at his feet.
  • He was lying face down in the mud.
  • I was lying flat on the floor.
  • Lie face up on the floor.
  • Lie still and try to sleep.
  • Lie still while I put the bandage on.
  • They lay quietly for a while.
  • He lay on his stomach.
  • She lay sprawled on the sofa.
  • He was lying naked on the bed.
  • She lay on her back and looked up at the sky.
  • The painting depicts a male figure lying prone.
meaning

to be or remain in a flat position on a surface

  • Clothes were lying all over the floor.
  • She picked up a pen that was lying nearby.
  • The book lay open on the desk.
  • Make sure the fabric lies flat.
Extra examples:
  • He just leaves his wet towel lying on the carpet.
  • Broken glass lay scattered all over the floor.
  • An empty pill bottle lay on the bedside table.
  • He found a piece of quartz lying on the sand.
  • She left the letter lying unread on her desk for a week.
  • He tried to pick up the gun that was lying close by.
  • A stack of waffles lay next to a pile of blueberry pancakes.
  • The books lay gathering dust on the shelf.
  • Debris and rubble lay everywhere.
  • The cables, pipes and wires that serve New York lie as deep as 800 feet underground.
  • The ship now lies at the bottom of the sea.
meaning

to be, remain or be kept in a particular state

  • Houses lie empty while people are homeless.
  • These machines have lain idle since the factory closed.
  • Snow was lying thick on the ground.
  • Much of the city now lay in ruins.
  • a ship lying at anchor
  • I'd rather use my money than leave it lying in the bank.
Extra examples:
  • The seeds lie dormant in the soil throughout the winter.
  • Passengers were standing up while first class seats lay empty.
  • Too many apartments are lying vacant.
  • The field is left to lie fallow.
  • These Roman ruins have lain undiscovered for two thousand years.
  • This precious film lay untouched in an attic.
  • Our plans lay in ruins.
  • Their dreams lay in tatters.
meaning

to exist or be found

  • The problem lies in deciding when to intervene.
  • Our strength lies in our loyal customer base.
  • The fault lies with you.
  • The answer seems to lie elsewhere.
  • We need to consider carefully where our best interests lie.
  • Different people see quite different things in this film, and therein lies its genius.
Extra examples:
  • My main interest lies in his early work.
  • The big difference between them lies in their attitudes.
  • Her strength lies in her ability to understand her opponent's thinking.
  • The challenge lies in the fact that most people do not like to plan so far ahead.
  • The appeal of his paintings lies in their simplicity and boldness.
  • The answer lies in your hands.
  • Where does the answer lie?
  • Perhaps the truth lies somewhere in between.
  • The really important things lie outside our narrow concerns.
  • This is an issue that lies very close to my heart.
  • All the power lies with him in this situation.
  • Our sympathies lie with the main character.
  • Thousands of units would be needed, and therein lies the challenge.
  • Cloning endangered species may seem a wonderful idea, but where would scientists stop? Herein lies the danger.
  • We can guess what lies at the root of her problems: money.
  • Joy and love lie at the heart of all his films.
  • At the heart of this story there lies a puzzle.
  • Between the two of them there lay an unspoken tension.
meaning

to be located in a particular place

  • The town lies on the coast.
  • An island lies in the middle of the lagoon.
Extra examples:
  • The building dates from around 1700 and lies close to the centre of Vienna.
  • The village lies in the foothills of the Dolomites.
  • The site lies next to the old library building.
  • There's a field lying next to the barn.
  • We walked to a stream that lay nearby.
  • The palace lies just outside the city walls.
  • The airport lies 50 miles east of the city.
  • These nations lie close to the sea lanes between Europe and China and Japan.
meaning

to be spread out in a particular place

  • The valley lay below us.
meaning

to be in a particular position during a competition

  • Thompson is lying in fourth place.
  • After five games the German team are lying second.

Idioms of vocabulary lie1

be/lie at the bottom of something
to be the original cause of something, especially something unpleasant
  • We need to find out what lies at the bottom of these fears.
  • I'd love to know what lies at the bottom of all this.
    • hang/lie heavy
    to be very easy to notice in a particular place in a way that is unpleasant
  • Smoke lay heavy on the far side of the water.
  • Despair hangs heavy in the stifling air.
    • to cause somebody/something to feel uncomfortable or anxious
  • The crime lay heavy on her conscience.
    • let sleeping dogs lie
    (saying)to avoid mentioning a subject or something that happened in the past, in order to avoid any problems or arguments
    lie ahead/in store
    to be going to happen to somebody in the future
  • You are young and your whole life lies ahead of you.
  • She didn’t know what lay in store.
  • We must be prepared for whatever lies ahead.
  • None of us knows what lies in store for us.
  • A tremendous amount of work lay ahead of us.
    • lie flat
    if a person lies flat, they reject the competitive work culture in society and adopt a more relaxed attitude to life, trying to do and spend as little as possible
  • Many Chinese youth are ‘lying flat’ to express their frustration with the lack of upward social mobility.
    • lie in state
    to be placed on view in a public place before being buried
    lie in wait (for somebody)
    to hide, waiting to surprise, attack or catch somebody
  • He was surrounded by reporters who had been lying in wait for him.
    • lie low
    (informal)to try not to attract attention to yourself
    see, etc. how the land lies
    (British English)to find out about a situation
  • Let's wait and see how the land lies before we do anything.
    • take something lying down
    to accept an offensive remark or act without protesting or reacting
    you’ve made your bed and you must lie in/on it
    (saying)you must accept the results of your actions

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