lying or laying?

[arcum]

Ok, I'm confused about which is the right word and I need some help. I have a character who is basically either laying or lying on a couch. The exact sentence is as follows:

"...she said before lying down on the couch..." Word is saying lying is right and dictionary.com is making me think it should be laying. I've struggled with this before so anyone that could help me solve this I would be very grateful towards.

 

[cloudy]

You "lay" an object on the table.

A person "lies" on the couch.

Does that help?

 

[emap]

What she said, also as near as I can recall laying is a statement and lying is an action in reference to people.

So a person laying on the couch is there when you see them, a person lying on the couch does so while you are seeing them.

English language, gotta love the contradicting words and meanings. Seriously, what other language has six meanings for the same word, none of those meanings having anything to do with each other.

 

[sr71plt]

I was sitting on a couch with someone who was lying up a storm the other day. Ummm. What? Oh. Sorry.

 

[sexylaila438]

hope this helps.....

Lie vs. Lay

To recline
PRESENT:lie, lying
PAST: lay
PARTICIPLE (a form of have): has/have/had lain

To put or place
(verb followed by an object)
PRESENT: lay, laying
PAST: laid
PARTICIPLE (a form of have): has/have/had laid

To tell a falsehood
PRESENT: lie, lying
PAST: lied
PARTICIPLE (a form of have): has/have/had lied

Examples in Present Tense
I like to lie down for a nap at 2:00 p.m.
I am lying down for a nap today.
The hens lay eggs.
The hen is laying eggs.
I am tempted to lie about my age.
I am not lying about my age.

Examples in Past Tense
I lay down for a nap yesterday at 2:00 p.m.
The hen laid two eggs yesterday.
He lied on the witness stand.

Examples with a Participle
I have lain down for a nap every day this week.
The hen has laid two eggs every day this week.
He has lied each day on the witness stand.

Here is the link to the site:
http://www.grammarbook.com/grammar/lieVlay.asp

 

[snooper]

Ok, I'm confused about which is the right word and I need some help. I have a character who is basically either laying or lying on a couch. The exact sentence is as follows:

"...she said before lying down on the couch..." Word is saying lying is right and dictionary.com is making me think it should be laying. I've struggled with this before so anyone that could help me solve this I would be very grateful towards.

This is Bill Gates' English versus the Queen's English again.

In the UK she ends up "lying on the sofa".
In the US she ends up "laying on the couch".

Of course, on Literotica she ends up "being laid on the bed", or for writers who don't use VEs, probably "being layed on the floor in the hall".

 

[sophieloves]

this came up with a poem i'd titled 'lie of the land'... seems we brits do it differently to N.America

someone said:

yikes, I almost forgot to mention-- the title. Are you intending a sort of play on words? If not, shouldn't it be, The Lay of the Land? at first I thought, okay, the "land" is gonna tell me a lie... oh well, maybe I am just dense today

and my reply:

Lie of the Land is correct: the features/characteristics of an area, also the current state of affairs. it also allows for the ambiguity, so i liked that. NOTE: i just looked it up and N.American use would be Lay! now why is N. America different from the rest of us english speakers?? so yeah, being a Brit i'd say 'the lie of the land' as in how things are. thanks again for your time.

 

[panchro]

lie, lay, lain

"To lie" is an irregular English verb. Recently, NPR ran a piece reporting that a clever linguist has come up with a mathematical formula which can be used to calculate how long it takes an irregular verb to become obsolete based on the frequency of usage. Because "lie" is used frequently, it will be obsolete more quickly than an obscure irregular verb. In spite of the math of it all, I urge Literotica writers to keep the correct form alive as long as we can by using "lie." Some may accuse us of writing smut, but at least we can write grammatically correct smut.

 

[cloudy]

Some may accuse us of writing smut, but at least we can write grammatically correct smut.

I agree.

 

[arcum]

Umm, it did initially. I'm pretty sleepy right now so I'll need to read it all again.

edit - actually, it looks like laid is the right term, though is sounds wrong to me.

 

[snooper]

"To lie" is an irregular English verb. ...

All English verbs are irregular, in that the language does not have a series of regular conjugations as languages like Latin and French do.

 

[sophieloves]

Umm, it did initially. I'm pretty sleepy right now so I'll need to read it all again.

edit - actually, it looks like laid is the right term, though is sounds wrong to me.

definitely sounds wrong to me. but if it's giving you so much trouble, why not replace it with another word? for example:

"...she said, before reclining on the couch."

 

[sr71plt]

but if it's giving you so much trouble, why not replace it with another word? for example:

"...she said, before reclining on the couch."

Bingo

 

[Fantasies_only]

Ok, I'm confused about which is the right word and I need some help. I have a character who is basically either laying or lying on a couch. The exact sentence is as follows:

"...she said before lying down on the couch..." Word is saying lying is right and dictionary.com is making me think it should be laying. I've struggled with this before so anyone that could help me solve this I would be very grateful towards.

I'm not an editor, but I was just passing by and saw your predicament.
In this case both are correct.
Although you lay something down and lye on the couch, and the suffix "ing" makes it lying, he can also lay himself down on the couch.
There are also exceptions to the rule.

"He's lying down on the couch."
"I found him just laying there."

It's the surrounding text you have to look at to determine which is correct.

 

[cloudy]

I'm not an editor, but I was just passing by and saw your predicament.
In this case both are correct.
Although you lay something down and lye on the couch, and the suffix "ing" makes it lying, he can also lay himself down on the couch.
There are also exceptions to the rule.

"He's lying down on the couch."
"I found him just laying there."

It's the surrounding text you have to look at to determine which is correct.

"lye" is a caustic chemical, not a verb.

 

[arcum]

definitely sounds wrong to me. but if it's giving you so much trouble, why not replace it with another word? for example:

"...she said, before reclining on the couch."

Well, the thing is, I think I ended up avoiding this last time for the very same reason so I wanted to resolve the issue. I'm pretty sure in the first story I wanted to say that one of my characters layed/laid/put down something down but restructured the sentence so it was a non-issue. I also think I avoided the issue in the 2nd story too and, well, in the 3rd story it came up yet again. So I figured I'd try and figure out what the right way is.

 

[Fantasies_only]

Well, the thing is, I think I ended up avoiding this last time for the very same reason so I wanted to resolve the issue. I'm pretty sure in the first story I wanted to say that one of my characters layed/laid/put down something down but restructured the sentence so it was a non-issue. I also think I avoided the issue in the 2nd story too and, well, in the 3rd story it came up yet again. So I figured I'd try and figure out what the right way is.

A sofa does not recline, therefore you can't be reclining on the sofa.
A chair can recline, so you may be reclining in the chair.

 

[cloudy]

A sofa does not recline, therefore you can't be reclining on the sofa.
A chair can recline, so you may be reclining in the chair.

Wrong, yet again.

re·cline
1 : to lean or incline backwards
2 : repose, lie

 

[Fantasies_only]

My point is you sit on a sofa but sit in a chair, and you can't say "reclining on", so it can't be a sofa.
Repositioning (2nd definition) is the correct one for this, however you RE-position yourself, meaning in the transition of one position to another, therefore you cannot be reclining on the sofa.

 

[cloudy]

My point is you sit on a sofa but sit in a chair, and you can't say "reclining on", so it can't be a sofa.
Repositioning (2nd definition) is the correct one for this, however you RE-position yourself, meaning in the transition of one position to another, therefore you cannot be reclining on the sofa.

Yes, you can.

Go back to story ideas where they tolerate your idiocy. I don't care what you personally think is correct or not, but you don't need to inflict your incompetency on others, and have them believing the wrong thing.

 

[Guest]

My point is...

Her words are like lye
on slick skin. She'll lay you
open, navel to bone
right there, where you lie.

​

 

[cloudy]

Her words are like lye
on slick skin. She'll lay you
open, navel to bone
right there, where you lie.

​

Indeed.

(there's a history)

 

[sr71plt]

My point is you sit on a sofa but sit in a chair, and you can't say "reclining on", so it can't be a sofa.
Repositioning (2nd definition) is the correct one for this, however you RE-position yourself, meaning in the transition of one position to another, therefore you cannot be reclining on the sofa.

Huh? Sure you can recline on a sofa. (You just couldn't have "clined" on it before that.)

 

[Fantasies_only]

Yes, you can.

Go back to story ideas where they tolerate your idiocy. I don't care what you personally think is correct or not, but you don't need to inflict your incompetency on others, and have them believing the wrong thing.

Listen, an incline is an angle right?
So to REcline, you would switch from one angle to another.
The back of a sofa is stiff and cannot be moved.
The surface of the sofa can't move either.
You are stuck in one position as you sit, whereas a lounge chair (called a recliner) has a back that leans back, so you can reposition yourself as you sit.
In addition a foot rest may be added for a sharper angle.

I don't care if you think you're right or not.
That was just rude and idiotic.

 

[cloudy]

Listen, an incline is an angle right?
So to REcline, you would switch from one angle to another.
The back of a sofa is stiff and cannot be moved.
The surface of the sofa can't move either.
You are stuck in one position as you sit, whereas a lounge chair (called a recliner) has a back that leans back, so you can reposition yourself as you sit.
In addition a foot rest may be added for a sharper angle.

I don't care if you think you're right or not.
That was just rude and idiotic.

I know I'm right, and I care about other authors being given incorrect information. I recline on my couch every day: I put my head at one end, and my feet at the other.

As far as my rudeness to you goes...deal with it. I don't like pedophiles. You know exactly what I think of you, I've told you often enough. You keep giving people incorrect information, and I'll keep calling you an idiot.