In short, I am majorly confused.
Lay, laid, layed, or lie.
i'm not even sure two are real words.
What are the different terms used for? Most other grammer i can do, but this has me frustrated!
Help!
Dictonaries are your friend. Only one of your words above does not exist. This usage note from the
American Heritage Dictonary, Fourth Edition should prove sufficient:
[SIZE=-1]USAGE NOTE:[/SIZE]
Lay (“to put, place, or prepare”) and
lie (“to recline or be situated”) have been confused for centuries; evidence exists that
lay has been used to mean “lie” since the 1300s. Why? First, there are two
lays. One is the base form of the verb
lay, and the other is the past tense of
lie. Second,
lay was once used with a reflexive pronoun to mean “lie” and survives in the familiar line from the child's prayer
Now I lay me down to sleep; lay me down is easily shortened to
lay down. Third,
lay down, as in
She lay down on the sofa sounds the same as
laid down, as in
I laid down the law to the kids. •
Lay and
lie are most easily distinguished by usage.
Lay is a transitive verb and takes a direct object.
Lay and its principal parts (
laid, laying) are correctly used in the following examples:
He laid (not
lay)
the newspaper on the table. The table was laid for four. Lie is an intransitive verb and cannot take an object.
Lie and its principal parts (
lay, lain, lying) are correctly used in the following examples:
She often lies (not
lays)
down after lunch. When I lay (not
laid)
down, I fell asleep. The rubbish had lain (not
laid)
there a week. I was lying (not
laying)
in bed when he called. •There are a few exceptions to these rules. The phrasal verb
lay for and the nautical use of
lay, as in
lay at anchor, though intransitive, are standard.
