You use lay to describe people who are involved with a Christian church but are not members of the clergy or are not monks or nuns.
Edwards is a Methodist lay preacher and social worker.
爱德华兹是一位卫理公会的世俗布道者和社工。
You use lay to describe people who are not experts or professionals in a particular subject or activity.
It is difficult for a lay person to gain access to medical libraries.
非专业人员很难进入医学图书馆。
lay aside
If you lay aside a feeling or belief, you reject it or give it up in order to progress with something.
put aside
Perhaps the opposed parties will lay aside their sectional interests and rise to this challenge.
反对党或许会放弃他们的局部利益,站起来面对这一挑战。
If you lay something aside, you put it down, usually because you have finished using it or want to save it to use later.
He finished the tea and laid the cup aside.
他喝完了茶,把杯子搁在一边。
lay down
If you lay something down, you put it down, usually because you have finished using it.
Daniel finished the article and laid the newspaper down on his desk.
丹尼尔看完了那篇文章就把报纸放在了他的桌子上。
If rules or people in authority lay down what people should do or must do, they officially state what they should or must do.
set down
Not all companies lay down written guidelines and rules.
不是所有的公司都制定书面的准则和条例。
If someone lays down their weapons, they stop fighting a battle or war and make peace.
The drug-traffickers have offered to lay down their arms.
毒贩子主动提出放下他们的武器。
lay off
If workers are laid off, they are told by their employers to leave their job, usually because there is no more work for them to do.
100,000 federal workers will be laid off to reduce the deficit.
10万名联邦工作人员将被解雇以减少赤字。
lay on
If you lay on something such as food, entertainment, or a service, you provide or supply it, especially in a generous or grand way.
They laid on a superb evening.
他们精心安排了一个美好的夜晚。
lay out
If you lay out a group of things, you spread them out and arrange them neatly, for example, so that they can all be seen clearly.
Grace laid out the knives and forks on the table.
格雷丝把刀叉摆放在桌子上。
To lay out ideas, principles, or plans means to explain or present them clearly, for example, in a document or a meeting.
Maxwell listened closely as Johnson laid out his plan.
马克斯韦尔仔细地听着约翰逊清晰地讲述他的计划。
lay up
If someone is laid up with an illness, the illness makes it necessary for them to stay in bed.
She was in the hospital for a week and laid up for a month after that.
她住了一个星期的院,之后又卧床一个月。
Powell ruptured a disc in his back and was laid up for a year.
鲍威尔背部椎间盘破裂,因此卧床一年。
lays , laying , laid
If you lay something somewhere, you put it there in a careful, gentle, or neat way.
Lay a sheet of newspaper on the floor.
把一张报纸放在地板上。
Mothers routinely lay babies on their backs to sleep.
母亲们通常会把婴儿平躺着放下睡觉。
If you lay something such as carpets, cables, or foundations, you put them into their permanent position.
A man came to lay the carpet.
一名男子来铺地毯。
When a female bird lays, or lays an egg, it produces an egg by pushing it out of its body.
My canary has laid an egg.
我的金丝雀下了一个蛋。
Lay is used with some nouns to talk about making official preparations for something. For example, if you lay the basis for something or lay plans for it, you prepare it carefully.
Diplomats meeting in Chile have laid the groundwork for far-reaching environmental regulations.
在智利会晤的外交官们已经为长远的环境保护规则奠定了基础。
Lay is used with some nouns in expressions about accusing or blaming someone. For example, if you lay the blame for a mistake on someone, you say it is their fault, or if the police lay charges against someone, they officially accuse that person of a crime.
She refused to lay the blame on any one party.
她拒绝归罪于任何一方。
If you lay the table or lay the places at a table, you arrange the knives, forks, and other things that people need on the table before a meal.
The butler always laid the table.
餐具总是由管家来摆放。