Transcription
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- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
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- [ley awf, of]
- /leɪ ɔf, ɒf/
- /leɪ ɒf/
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- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
-
- [ley awf, of]
- /leɪ ɔf, ɒf/
Definitions of lay off words
- verb with object lay off to put or place in a horizontal position or position of rest; set down: to lay a book on a desk. 1
- verb with object lay off to knock or beat down, as from an erect position; strike or throw to the ground: One punch laid him low. 1
- verb with object lay off to put or place in a particular position: The dog laid its ears back. 1
- verb with object lay off to cause to be in a particular state or condition: Their motives were laid bare. 1
- verb with object lay off to set, place, or apply (often followed by to or on): to lay hands on a child. 1
- verb with object lay off to dispose or place in proper position or in an orderly fashion: to lay bricks. 1
Information block about the term
Origin of lay off
First appearance:
before 900 One of the 4% oldest English words
before 900; Middle English layen, leggen, Old English lecgan (causative of licgan to lie2); cognate with Dutch leggen, German legen, Old Norse legja, Gothic lagjan
Historical Comparancy
Parts of speech for Lay off
noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
lay off popularity
A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 100% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.
Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".
lay off usage trend in Literature
This diagram is provided by Google Ngram ViewerSynonyms for lay off
verb lay off
- cease — If something ceases, it stops happening or existing.
- desist — If you desist from doing something, you stop doing it.
- halt — to falter, as in speech, reasoning, etc.; be hesitant; stumble.
- leave off — to go out of or away from, as a place: to leave the house.
- let up — to allow or permit: to let him escape.
Antonyms for lay off
See also
Matching words
- Words starting with l
- Words starting with la
- Words starting with lay
- Words starting with layo
- Words starting with layof
- Words starting with layoff