Lie or lay lie meaning to recline lay meaning to put or place forms to lie lie lay hashave lain lying infinitive present past past participle present participle forms to lay lay laid hashave laid laying infinitive present past past participle present participle intransitive verb no object transitive verb has an object. Conversely, the word lie is used when there is no object involved, i. If he wanted sally to rest in his arms on her own, the correct line would be lie down sally. Lie also means to be in or to move into a horizontal. Lie expresses an action that a person or animal does by oneself, recline. When you feel tired at the end of the day, you may lie down. To say lay down sally would imply that someone should grab sally and lay her down. This is a free intermediate english grammar quiz and esl worksheet. Lay quiz 2 from the blue book of grammar and punctuation. I though that you laidlay the magazine on that shelf. Lay needs an objectsomething being laidwhile lie cannot have an object. Remember that to lie also has the meaning of making an untruthful statement intentionally.
When he completes his work, martin will lie lay his tools on the counter. Pay attention to the indicated time to determine which tense you should use. Last night i laidlay awake in bed, thinking about my life. Until recently, i lie lay in the sun almost every day during the summer. Sometimes i like to laylie down and rest after lunch. The stupid thief has lay laid the clues all over the crime scene. Lie quiz 1 the blue book of grammar and punctuation. Jan 30, 2018 of course, im excluding lie, tell an untruththis is just the reclining lie. For example, you have to lay or set or raise something like raise the flag.
To lay is a transitive verb that requires a direct object. All players with losing hands should lie lay all of the cards on the table. Our cabin lies lays in the middle of a large valley. Past and past participle of that lie is lied and lied which should not be confused with the lie as in lie down. Lay and lie both have a variety of meanings lay could be used as a noun referring to the general appearance of an area, including the direction of streams, hills, and similar features. This is a quiz for students of english as a second language. But lay needs an object something being laid while lie cannot have an object. Lie english verbs this article will explain the difference between the verbs to lie and to lay. Because you need a direct object only with lay, you will know that the past tense is laid. Then determine in what tense the sentence is written.
After i get home from work, i often lie lay down for a nap before dinner. Michael omara books, 2006 in politics, strangely enough, the best way to play your cards is to lay them face upward on the table. Lielay lie and lay are often confused, probably because the past tense of lie is lay. Languages change, and we are certainly moving toward a time when style and grammar books no longer distinguish between lay and lie, but we arent there yet. Past participle takes the helping verb has, have, or. Use the past participle forms whenever you have one or more auxiliary verbs forming the tense. Worksheets are grammar work lie lay, using lay and lie, grammar work lie lay answers and tips mrs, commonly confused verbs lie lay or laid, have you laid the table yet my cat lay in the sun all, lie irregular verbs, irregular verbs exercise 6 lay and lie, arranged by pronunciation changes. Lie present tense past tense helping verb has, have, or past participle takes the had lay laid laid lie lay lain the present tense a. The problem is in both their definitions and their use in the past tense.
Lay means put something down in a flat position and is transitive, which means it takes a direct object. Which for the following exercises, complete the sentence with either who, that, or which. The words lay and lie are commonly very problematic for both nonnative and native english speakers. For more help, see the conjugation chart for lay and lie. I know many advanced students who have to make a little pause to think before using them when speaking. Much many is used when referring to a large but definite number. They have lay laid their weapons on the ground and raised their hands in surrender.
English grammar today a reference to written and spoken english grammar and usage cambridge dictionary. The key difference is that lay is transitive and requires an object to act upon, and lie is intransitive, describing something moving on its own or already in position. Here are examples on how to properly use the different forms of lay and lie. When ben and cheri come in, they lay their keys on. These words confuse even the best editors, so you pretty much have to memorize a chart and then practice to build your confidence. In worksheet 2, students must circle the correct form of the verb lie, lay and rewrite the sentence using the correct form in the correct tense. Lay and lie exercise translation exa mp les s lay laid laid have you laid the table yet.
The verb used above is not to lay, its the past tense of to lie. You lay something down, and people lie down by themselves. The word lay should be used when there is an object receiving the action, i. For example, you might lay a book on the table, lay a sweater on the bed, or lay a child in her crib. Test yourself on the differences between lay and lie. A small piece of the bomb lay laid right next to my foot. Practice with the present tense, past tense, and past participle in the following sentences, choose the correct word.
As you can see, the past tense of lie is lay, but the past tense of lay is laid, which is a recipe for confusion. Lie vs lay exercise choose the correct options to complete. The police officer told him to laylie down his gun. The conjugation of these verbs is so confusing that native english speakers myself included regularly make mistakes with their use.
If you can substitute a form of the verb to be is, are, was, were, being and the sentence still makes sense grammatically, you want lie. Commonly confused words practice exercises for each of the following sentences, circle the correct word choice. This shared form accounts for much of the confusion with these two verbs. It tests understanding of the differences between lay and lie. The verbs marked with an asterisk will take an object. Wells the lion and the calf shall lie down together, but the calf wont get much sleep.
Of course, a second verb to lie means to deceive, to pass off false information as if it were the truth, but here we are focusing on the meaning of to lie that gives writers the most grief. I though that you laid lay the magazine on that shelf. Online quiz, can also be printed out for use in class. It seems that fewer people are lying laying in the sun these days. Klems july 7, 2015 heres the difference between lay vs. He stood at the door, and his rifle lay laid right next to him on the table. Lay quiz 2 the blue book of grammar and punctuation.
The distinction is very simple to remember, lay needs an object which is laid down but lie cannot have an object and always uses a person who lies down. The persent participle forms may also be tricky as they only differ with the additional letter a. S lie lay lain my cat lay in the sun all morning s lie lied lied he says he never lies. This lesson explains the difference between lay and lie. The simple present form of lay is the same word as the simple past form of lie. It does not accept an object noun phrase because it is an. Lie and lay both have many definitions, but theyre most often confused where lie means to recline and lay means to put down.
Check your answers with the interactive version of the exercise. Now lay the back of the shirt flat on the board and iron out any creases in whatever style you see fit. Dec 29, 2016 notice that while the forms of lay are quite easy to remember, the forms of the verb lie may cause a little confusion to some especially the past tense of lie which is lay. The carpenter lay laid the hammer right next to the nail. The past tense of lie as in, to tell an untruth is lied. Lay and lie both have numerous meanings but the confusion most often arises where lay means to put down and lie means to recline. To remember that laid as opposed to lain is the past tense of lay, just memorize this phrase use a d when there is a direct object. To remember that laid as opposed to lain is the past tense of lay, just memorize this phrase. To choose the correct form, you must understand the uses of the simple present. On the other hand, lie can be used as a noun meaning a false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive or as a verb denoting to speak falsely or utter untruth knowingly, as with intent. Lie diffen english language grammar words lay and lie are frequently confused verbs that have similar meanings to do with objects or people lying horizontal on a surface, but for this one big detail lay is transitive and always has a direct object. If you exclude the meaning to tell an untruth and just focus on the settingreclining meaning of lay and lie, then the important distinction is that lay requires a direct object and lie does not. Lie lay lain to recline or to rest lay laid laid to put something down. These blanks will require the appropriate forms of lay or lie to keep track of your answers, print the accompanying handout.
Both lie and lay are verbs, meaning that they indicate an action of some sort. English grammar today una guida di riferimento alla grammatica e alluso dellinglese parlato e scritto cambridge dictionary. Lie means recline or be located and is intransitive, which means it cannot take a direct object. Lie is followed by a prepositional phrase expressing the location where the action occurs e. First decide if the sentence is describing someone reclining or putting something. Peter lied about his age to get into the night club. This is one of the quizzes from the internet tesl journals selfstudy quizzes for esl students. Practice lie and lay in this interactive javascript quiz. Apr 19, 2018 lay versus lie in the present tense first, well do the easy part, which is the present tense. Pdf lesson plans, teacher articles and a directory of teaching and reference resources. These two words can be very confusing, so dont worry if you find yourself. Lay you will impress your family and friends with your grammar skills if you can distinguish between lie and lay. Lay versus lie in the present tense first, well do the easy part, which is the present tense. Sometimes i like to lay lie down and rest after lunch.
First decide if the sentence is describing someone reclining or putting something down. In worksheet 1, students circle the correct answer. Earlier today, jonah lay laid on the couch and listened to music. However, the verb lie and the verb lay are two absolutely different words, like rhinoceros and apple. Bill laidlay his comb on the counter after he combed his hair. For hundreds of additional tips, visit the grammar girl archives test your understanding of who versus whom with grammar girls new quiz. For each of the following, choose the correct sentence. Remember that to lay laid, laid needs an object and to lie lay, lain doesnt. Difference between lay and lie is that lie and lay are confusing words where lie means to recline to rest on a surface and lay means to put down something. You can take this quiz and then check your answers right away. But it gets messier, because the past tense of lay is laid, and the past tense of lie is, well, lay.
Lay needs an object something being laidwhile lie cannot have an object. In the exercise that follows, you will read sentences that contain blanks. Grammarquizzes more writing aids commonly confused lie vs. We discussed the multiple literary illusionsallusions within the text. Mary lay laid her fork on her plate and left the dining room.
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