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verb [intransitive] British English pronunciation: lie

/laɪ/

present tense
I/you/we/they	lie
he/she/it	lies
present participle	lying
past tense	lay
past participle	lain

Related dictionary definitions

more dictionary definitions

1
to be in a position in which your body is flat on a surface such as the floor or a bed
lie on/in etc:
She was lying on the bed watching television.
lie still/awake/unconscious etc:
I lay awake worrying about work.
lie on your back/side/stomach etc:
Emma was lying on her back in the sunshine.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: more
1. a.
  to put yourself in a position in which your body is flat on a surface
  Go and lie on the bed until you feel better.
  Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: more
See also lay
2
to be on a particular surface or in a particular place
There were clothes lying all over the floor.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: occupy, set, exist, sit, stand... more
1. a.
  used for saying where a place is
  The village lies in a valley.
  The farm lay a few miles to the north.
  Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: occupy, set, exist, sit, stand... more
2. b.
  formal used for saying where someone is buried
  Here lies the body of James McDonald.
  Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: more
3
to be in a particular position in a competition
O’Connell is currently lying in second position in the world championship.
As we go into the third round, Evans is lying in third place.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: play, race, meet, contest, represent... more
4
used for talking about things such as plans, ideas, and qualities and what they consist of
He must decide where his future lies (=what he is going to do with his life).
lie in:
The difficulty lies in knowing what to do next.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: include, take in, involve, incorporate, count in... more
5
if something lies in a particular state, it is in that state
The castle lay in ruins.
Her bag was lying open on the table.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: occupy, set, exist, sit, stand... more
6
if your interest lies in a particular subject, you are interested in it
My main interest lies in the development of new technology.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: include, take in, involve, incorporate, count in... more
7
past tense lied
past participle lied
to deliberately say something that is not true
It was obvious that she was lying.
lie about:
He had to lie about his age to get into the army.
lie to:
She admitted lying to the police.
lie through your teeth (=say something completely false):
They say they’re not married but they’re lying through their teeth.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: misspeak, deceive, make up, invent, concoct... more
1. a.
  if something lies, it shows or suggests facts that are not true
  The results of these surveys often lie.
  Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: ring hollow, add up, belie, have a hollow ring... more

phrases

let it/things lie
to not do or say anything because you might make a difficult situation worse
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: bother, abstain, neglect, refrain, let nature take its course... more
lie ahead/before/in store
if something lies ahead, it is going to happen to you in the future
A grand future lies ahead of him.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: await, threaten, be heading/headed for something, loom, waiting to happen... more
lie at the heart of something
to be the most important part of something
The questions of training and pay lie at the heart of the staffing problems.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: matter, figure, emphasize, count, predominate... more
lie at the root of something
to be the cause of something
He believes that unemployment lies at the root of the problem.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: catalyze, bring about, trigger, form, invent... more
lie heavy on someone
formal
to make someone feel unhappy
Feelings of guilt lay heavy on him.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: upset, wound, disturb, depress, distress... more
lie in state
if the dead body of an important person lies in state, it is put in a public place for people to go and look at
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: more
lie in wait (for someone)
1. 1
  to hide so that you can attack someone when they pass you
  Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: remain, stay, wait, keep, linger... more
2. 2
  if something unpleasant is lying in wait for you, it is going to happen to you
  Little did I know what troubles were lying in wait for me when I got home.
  Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: await, threaten, be heading/headed for something, loom, waiting to happen... more
lie low
to hide, or to try to avoid attracting attention to yourself, because someone is trying to find you
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: hide, cover, obscure, conceal, tuck away... more

phrasal verbs

lie about

or lie around

[intransitive]

present tense
I/you/we/they	lie about
he/she/it	lies about
present participle	lying about
past tense	lay about
past participle	lain about

1
to have been left somewhere instead of being put in the correct place
Never leave cash or other valuables just lying around.
You shouldn’t leave bottles of pills lying around the house.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: occupy, set, exist, sit, stand... more
2
lie about/around something to spend a lot of time relaxing
We lay around all day playing cards and watching television.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: sit back, rest, relax, idle away, laze... more
1. a.
  to spend time being lazy when you should be doing something
  He just lies around the house all day.
  Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: sit back, rest, relax, idle away, laze... more

lie ahead

[intransitive]

present tense
I/you/we/they	lie ahead
he/she/it	lies ahead
present participle	lying ahead
past tense	lay ahead
past participle	lain ahead

if something lies ahead, especially something difficult or unpleasant, it is going to happen in the future and you will have to deal with it

We need to be ready for whatever problems lie ahead.

Synonyms or related words for this meaning of

lie back

[intransitive]

present tense
I/you/we/they	lie back
he/she/it	lies back
present participle	lying back
past tense	lay back
past participle	lain back

to move from a sitting position into a position in which you are lying flat on a surface

The doctor asked me to lie back on the couch.

lie behind

[transitive]

present tense
I/you/we/they	lie behind
he/she/it	lies behind
present participle	lying behind
past tense	lay behind
past participle	lain behind

lie behind something to be the real reason for a decision or action

We’d like to know what lay behind her decision to change her will.

lie down

[intransitive]

present tense
I/you/we/they	lie down
he/she/it	lies down
present participle	lying down
past tense	lay down
past participle	lain down

1
same as lie (sense 1a)
Lie down and relax.
I’m going to go and lie down for a while.
2
lie down on the job to not work as hard at something as you should do
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: avoid, get out of, duck out of, abstain, shirk... more
3
not take something lying down to show that you will not accept unfair treatment by complaining about it or trying to change it
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: fight off, fend off, stand up to, parry, hold off... more

lie in

[intransitive] British

present tense
I/you/we/they	lie in
he/she/it	lies in
present participle	lying in
past tense	lay in
past participle	lain in

to stay in bed in the morning for longer than usual

We usually lie in on Sundays.

lie with

[transitive]

present tense
I/you/we/they	lie with
he/she/it	lies with
present participle	lying with
past tense	lay with
past participle	lain with

1
lie with someone if something such as responsibility or blame for something lies with someone, they are responsible for it or they should be blamed for it
There is evidence to suggest that some blame lies with the police.
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: rest with, come under, fall on, fall to, the ball is in someone’s court... more
1. a.
  if something such as power or a decision lies with someone, they have power or the right to make a decision
  Unfortunately, the decision doesn’t lie with our department.
  Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: benefit, get, gain, exploit, jump at... more
2
lie with someone an old phrase meaning ‘to have sex with someone’
Synonyms or related words for this meaning of lie: sleep with, consummate, copulate, bed, make love... more

This is the British English definition of lie. View American English definition of lie

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lie

What are red words?

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Related dictionary definitions

phrases

let it/things lie

lie ahead/before/in store

lie at the heart of something

lie at the root of something

lie heavy on someone

lie in state

lie in wait (for someone)

lie low

phrasal verbs

lie about

or lie around

lie ahead

lie back

lie behind

lie down

lie in

lie with

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