These three verbs are a headache not only for us English learners, but also for native English speakers. For example, Sufyan Stevens taught the already scandalous Miley Cyrus about when to use lie and when to use lay.
“Dear Miley. Listening to "GetItRight", I can't stop (great song, great message, great body), but you should learn some grammar. Anxious line: “I have been laying in this bed all night long.” Miley, grammatically, "you"ve been LYING," (you were lying) is not "LAYING" (laying). This is an irregular verb that must be used with an object, for example: “I have been laying my tired booty on this bed all night long.” (I put my tired ass on the bed all night). Nevermind. I'm not the best songwriter, but I know what I'm talking about. So sing it right next time. But don't worry, Faulkner made that mistake too."
(“Dear Miley. I can't stop listening to "GetItRight" (great song, great message, great body), but maybe you need a quick grammar lesson. One particular line causes concern: “I been laying in this bed all night long.” Miley, technically speaking, you've been LYING, not LAYING, an irregular verb form that should only be used when there's an object, i.e. “I've been laying my tired booty on this bed all night long.” Whatever. I 'm not the best lyricist, but you know what I mean. Get It Right The Next Time. But don't worry, even Faulkner messed it up.”)
In addition to "lie" (lie) and "lay" (lay) there is also "lie" (lie), which, of course, does not really help in this situation. So let's clarify the difference between them once and for all.
TO LIE- lie down (verb forms: lie, lay, lie, lying)
The verb "to lie" means being in a horizontal position. This is an intransitive verb - it cannot attract any direct object to itself, that is, you cannot say "lie something" - lie something.
I lie down on my bed to rest my weary bones.
(I lay down on the bed to let my tired bones rest)
Pay attention to the setup - the second form of the verb "lie" - "lay" is completely identical to the verb "lay" (lay). This causes a lot of confusion. Compare:
(Yesterday I lay and thought about what I need to do during the day.)
After work I always lay the tools inside the box.
(After work, I always put the tools in a box)
TO LAY- put (forms of the verb: lay, laid, laid, laying)
It is this verb that is transitive, that is, it indicates the action that is performed on the subject.
I must lay the tablecloth before we put the silverware and plates.
(I need to lay down the tablecloth before we put the cutlery and plates in)
When he entered the room, he laid his jacket on the sofa.
(When he entered the room he put his coat on the sofa)
Verbs lie - to lie, lay - put and lie - to lie similar in spelling and difficult to remember. In order not to get confused in them, we offer a small memo.
We lie ON, therefore the verb LIE (on) in the third form at the end has a letter n
to lie-l a y-l a i n
In the second form you will not be mistaken if you look at the third. The same vowel is repeated.
We continue to remember. Of the remaining two verbs put and lie one is correct, the other is incorrect. Remember the difference like this: lying is wrong, but the verb right.
To lie - lied - lied (just add -d)
It remains to deal with the last verb, and this is the verb lay. It's wrong, it looks like say. Forms from say - said - said, then from lay will be lay - laid - laid.
Summarize:
to lie - lay -lain - lying to lie
to lie - lie - lie - lie
to lay - laid - laid - laying
In conclusion, remember a few stable phrases with these verbs:
lay the table - set the table
lay foundations - lay the foundations
lay eggs - lay eggs
lie in the sun - sunbathe
tell lies - to tell a lie
And now let's try ourselves in the exercises. Remember to change verbs according to tense.
Ex. 1 Fill in the correct word.
1. He was *** on the bed smoking a cigarette.
2. She moved up the stairs past the few skins that *** on a table and made her way into the office.
3. She had *** to protect her son.
4. For a few minutes he just *** there.
5. She would *** awake worrying.
6. The dog was *** dead on the floor.
7. Flat on the floor.
8. She *** back against the pillows.
9. The papers were *** neatly on his desk.
10. The town *** in a small wooded valley.
11. A blank and empty future *** before me.
12. I was wondering what *** in store for us.
13. The book *** open on the table.
14. The town now *** in ruins.
15. Don't *** in the sun for too long.
16. The cat was *** fast asleep by the fire.
17. Clothes were *** all over the floor.
18. The book *** open on his desk.
19. Snow was thick on the ground.
20. The town *** on the coast.
Ex. 2 Fill in the correct word.
1. You could see from his face that he was ***.
2. Don't *** to me!
3. She *** about her age.
4. The camera cannot *** (= give a false impression).
5. A pen *** on the desk.
6. The river *** 30km to the south.
7. Here *** the body of Mary Taylor (= This is where Mary Taylor is buried).
8. There are several houses *** empty in the town.
9. The town *** in ruins.
10. Are you accusing me of telling ***?
11. Are you *** to me?
12. Don't trust her - she's ***.
13. I suspect he *** about his age.
14. There was a child *** on the ground…
15. He *** awake watching her for a long time.
16. Broken glass *** scattered on the carpet.
17. The islands *** at the southern end of the Kurile chain.
18. The picture *** hidden in the archives for over 40 years…
19. His country's economy *** in ruins.
20. ‘Who else do you work for?’-‘No one.’-‘That’s a ***.’…
Ex. 3 Fill in the correct word.
1. All the boys told *** about their adventures.
2. If someone is ***, they are saying something which they know is not true.
3. He *** his hand on my shoulder.
4. *** the material flat on the table.
5. It was an invention which *** the foundations of modern radio technology.
6. The carpet was *** last week.
7. The project involved *** an oil pipeline across the desert.
8. The flies *** their eggs on decaying meat.
9. John was *** the table.
10. As she spoke, she was *** him a place at the table.
11. Mandela helped *** the foundations for a new democratic South Africa.
12. She *** the baby down gently on the bed.
13. The cloth should be *** flat.
14. The foundations of the house are being *** today.
15. (figurative) They had *** the groundwork for future development.
16. Before they started they *** newspaper on the floor.
17. Look for a butterfly *** its eggs.
18. The grapes were *** to dry on racks.
19. The cuckoo *** its eggs in other birds' nests.
20. The hens are not *** well (= not producing many eggs).
Ex. 4 Fill in the correct word.
1. Thousands of turtles drag themselves onto the beach and *** their eggs in the sand.
2. He *** the tray down on the table.
3. She *** aside her book and went to answer the phone.
4. We're having a new carpet *** in the hall next week.
5. The plan is to *** (= build) the foundations for the new apartments in October.
6. The bird *** a single egg on the ground.
7. The floor was *** with newspaper.
8. A female toad may *** 20,000 eggs each season; perhaps a quarter of a million in her lifetime.
9. On his way out, Jack stole the goose that *** the golden eggs.
10. This time the front door was open and a swathe of sunlight *** across the red-tiled floor.
11. A fat young man *** spread-eagled on the floor.
12. I hobbled upstairs and *** on the floor to get my shorts off.
13. Her skirt and top *** puddled on the floor where she had taken them off.
14. His binoculars *** abandoned on the floor.
15. Mr Knospe *** the foundation stone and drank his share of champagne at a party in his honor.
16. The drama school training will only *** the foundations and prepare you for the profession you are joining.
17. Then I hear Gary returning and I go down to *** the table.
18. The Tasman Sea *** between Tasmania and Australia.
19. My gun *** on a small table.
20. In the kitchen Anne and Millie are *** the table for dinner, talking seriously.
21. *** a sheet of newspaper on the floor…
22. Mothers routinely *** babies on their backs to sleep.
In this article, we recall the verbs lay and lie and learn how to use them correctly in speech.
Verbs lay and lie for many, they often become a real problem, they are very “insidious”. With their "treachery" they slightly resemble the Russian verbs "put on / put on", in the use of which quite a lot of people get confused. Therefore, in order to make friends with these verbs and not avoid them in speech, let's figure out what is the difference between lay and lie?
Let's start with lay:
Lay - put, put
Lay- an irregular verb, respectively, has special forms and:
lay — laid — laid—lay+ing —> layout
Lay something/someone put something; put something or someone. It is very important to remember that lay is a transitive verb, that is, a verb that is always followed by a direct object: put or put (what?) book, pen, phone or (whom?) child, baby. By using lay, we must say what put.
Please lay the book on the table. - Please put the book on the table.
Lay the baby on the bed. - Put the baby on the bed.
By the way, please note that lay implies “put something carefully, carefully, carefully”, that is, not to throw a book on the table, but to put it carefully.
She laid her head on the pillow. She laid her head on the pillow.
He laid flowers on the grave. — He put flowers on the grave. (He laid flowers on the grave.)
And here is the expression lay the table means "set the table", although it is used in British English (in American they usually say set the table):
Can you help me lay the table? Can you help me set the table?
To avoid mistakes in the use of this verb, it is imperative to remember that after lay a direct object always follows (“put” what? or whom?).
Lie - lie, lie down
Let's go to the verb lie, which means "lie down, lie down" that is, to be in a horizontal position or take a horizontal position. Lie, Unlike lay, this is an intransitive verb, therefore it is used without an object:
I love to lie on a beach and read. — I like to lie on the beach and read.
If you are tired, you can lie on the sofa. If you are tired, you can lie down on the sofa.
I.e lie can ( where?) on the beach or lie down (where?) on the sofa but not what?
Lie is also an irregular verb:
lie — lay — lain— lie+ing —> lying
And so wrong that its past simple form somehow coincided with the infinitive of the verb lay (put), which was discussed above. It is this feature that causes confusion in the use of these verbs. I.e lie (lie down, lie down) in the past simple tense has the form lay (lay, lay down):
She lay on the bed to take a nap. She lay down on the bed to take a nap.
The book lay open on the desk. The book lay open on the table.
A couple more verb examples lie:
The cat was lying under the tree. — The cat was lying under a tree.
I have never lain in a hammock before. I have never laid in a hammock before.
Lie - lie, lie
It’s even more interesting further ... Do you remember how it will be in English “lie, lie”? Yes, yes, you were not mistaken, to lie, that is, to tell a lie - lie. But in this sense, this verb is correct, therefore, in order to form the forms and, we add the ending -ed :
lie — lie — lie— lie+ing —> lying
Don't lie to me! - Do not lie to me! (Do not lie to me!)
She lied about her age to get the job. She lied about her age to get a job.
Compare: lay or lie?
These are such wonderful verbs that you just can’t pass by. Look at them again, compare and try to remember how and in what forms the verbs are used. lay and lie.
Lay something/someone- to put something or someone; put something:
to lay a book - put a book (put a book)
to lay a baby - put the baby (put the baby)
I usually lay my phone on the table. I usually put my phone on the table.
I laid
I have laid my phone on the table. — I put my phone on the table.
Lie- lie down, lie down
to lie on the sofa - lie on the sofa, lie on the sofa
I usually lie on the sofa. — I usually lie on the couch.
I lay on the sofa. - I lay down on the sofa.
I have lain in a hammock before. — I used to lie in a hammock.
Lie, Unlike lay, is used without the following addition. It is by the presence or absence of a direct object that we can distinguish their coinciding forms:
I lay the book. - I'm putting down the book. / I lay on the sofa. - I lay down on the sofa.
(In the first sentence there is a direct object I put down (what?) the book. In the second sentence lay is the past tense form of the verb lie(lie down, lie down), there is no addition.)
Lie in the meaning of "lie, lie" - the correct verb:
Lie(to someone) (about something) - lie, lie:
I never lie. - I never lie.
I lie about my age. “I lied about my age.
I have never lie before. “I have never lied before.
Well, a small task: lay or lie? Answers can be left in the comments below.
You look sick. Please, … down!
Please, … the bill on the table.
Good luck and good mood everyone!
The verbs lie and lay always cause a lot of difficulties in use, and even people who speak English well confuse them with each other.
All this is because these words have a similar meaning and spelling. In the article I will tell you how to remember their use.
Lie
Pronunciation and translation: 
Lie / [barking] - to lie
Meaning of the word:
Keep your whole body in a horizontal position
Use:
Usage: We use the word lie when we say that someone is lying on a bed, sofa, or other surface. This action is performed independently, that is, no one performs it on us. For example: She lay on the couch all day and watched TV shows.
Note:
In the past tense, lie has the forms lay and lain. Do not confuse it with the verb lie - "to lie."
Although their spelling in the present tense is the same, in the past tense the word "lie" has the forms lied, lied.
Example:
He is lying on the bed.
He lies on the bed.
The doll lay on the floor.
The doll was on the floor.
Lay
Pronunciation and translation: 
Lay / [lei] - put, put
Meaning of the word:
put something/someone on a horizontal surface
Use:
We use the word lay when we put something / someone on some surface (table, sofa, bed). That is, we perform an action on an object.
When we use this word, we make sure to specify who or what we are putting in. For example: She put the phone on the bedside table.
In the past tense, lay has the form laid, laid.
Example:
She laid a book on the table.
She put the book on the table.
He laid a hand on my shoulder.
He put his hand on my shoulder.
What is the difference?
Word lie done independently. That is, we say that someone is lying on a sofa, bed, floor, etc. For example: She was so tired of working that when she came, she immediately lay down on the bed.
Word lay we use when action done to someone or something. That is, we put something / someone on the table, bed, sofa, etc. For example: I put the bag on my knees.
Consolidation exercise
Now choose one of the two words for the following sentences. Leave your answers in the comments below the article.
1. My cat loves ___ on the windowsill.
2. He ___ on the couch watching TV.
3. She ___ documents on the table.
4. He ___ his tools in the box.
5. Notebook ___ on the shelf.
6. I ___ your T-shirt on the sofa.
The article will focus on verbs that very often cause confusion among students. Moreover, even native speakers sometimes get confused.
Friends, hello everyone! In this article I would like to tell you about two verbs - "to lie" and "to lay". Very often they cause confusion in people during a conversation. By the way, even native speakers can make reservations. I talked to the guys several times, and they told me about it.
So why are these words so easily confused? Now I will explain.
The verb "to lie".
This word has two meanings in English. The first of them:
to lie — lie, deceive.
lie-lied-lied
For example:
Why are you lying to me?
(Why are you fooling me?)
He lies all the time!
(He lies all the time!)
The second meaning of this word is:
to lie — lie.
Three forms: lie-lay-lain
I lie in the bed.
(I lie in bed)
Yesterday I lay on the bed.
(I was lying on the bed yesterday)
I've lain on this sofa before.
(I've laid on this couch before)
That is, "lay" in this case is the second form () of the verb "to lie - lie". But as you know, in English there is a separate verb "to lay", which has a slightly different meaning.
The verb "to lay".
To Lay translation of the verb -"put".
to lay something down put something somewhere.
Three forms: lay-laid-laid
This is the reason for the confusion. Here are some examples with this word:
I lay my pen in the backpack.
(I put my pen in my backpack)
I laid my pen on the table yesterday.
(I put my pen on the table yesterday)
I've laid my shoes on the floor.
(I put (put) my shoes on the floor)
That's how things are 🙂
As you can see, the word "lay" is the past tense form of the verb "lie" - to lie. But at the same time, there is also a separate verb "lay - to put", which in turn has other forms. In general, it is really easy to get confused. Keep this in mind.
lie-lied-lied (lie, deceive)
lie-lay-lain (lie)
lay-laid-laid (put)
Try to come up with a few sentences similar to my examples to practice.
Keep learning English and take care of yourself!
