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Laid vs Lay AGAIN! :-(
Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2016 6:05 pm
by oursilverstrands
Jan, my memory isn't serving me well.
1) We
laid there until daylight.
2) We
lay there until daylight.
I think it's (2), but I forgot why.
Lillian
Re: Laid vs Lay AGAIN! :-(
Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2016 8:42 pm
by glorybee
You're correct; it's #2.
In the present tense, 'lay' means to put something down and 'lie' means to put yourself into a reclining position.
It gets trickier in the past tense (as your sentence are); the simple past tense of 'lay' is 'laid,' but the simple past tense of 'lie' is 'lay.'
Re: Laid vs Lay AGAIN! :-(
Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2016 9:19 pm
by oursilverstrands
Thanks, Jan. Now that I have the reason why, I don't think I'll forget it.
Lillian
Re: Laid vs Lay AGAIN! :-(
Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2016 9:37 pm
by Deb Porter
I have a little Grammar Girl guide printed out on my noticeboard for lie/lay/laid emergencies. I tried to find it then, but it's really tiny now (maybe my Mac's resolution). So I found another one that may help:
Re: Laid vs Lay AGAIN! :-(
Posted: Thu Nov 17, 2016 9:55 pm
by oursilverstrands
That's great, Deb, but the concept of reclining vs. laying something down on a table best helps me to distinguish between Lie, Lay and Lay, Laid.
Thanks,
Lillian