Word.ws English Dictionary

laying the table

laying the table is the present participle and gerund of lay the table.

Meaning of lay the table

Verb

lay the table (third-person singular simple present lays the table, present participle laying the table, simple past and past participle laid the table)

  1. Synonym of set the table (“to arrange plates, dishes, etc. in preparation for a meal”).
    Synonyms:
    set the table

Questions about laying the table

What is laying the table the present participle and gerund of?
Laying the table is the present participle and gerund of lay the table.

Words near laying the table in the dictionary

  1. laying store by
  2. laying the dust
  3. laying the groundwork
  4. laying the hammer down
  5. laying the smack down
  6. laying the table
  7. laying to
  8. laying to heart
  9. laying to rest
  10. laying tracks
  11. laying up

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: laying the table (page history and authors); lay the table (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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