LAYS DOWN Synonyms: 142 Similar and Opposite Words

lays down

verb

present tense third-person singular of lay down

as in enacts

to put into effect through legislative or authoritative action the city council promises to lay down new ordinances that will force dog walkers to clean up after their animals

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as in declares

to state clearly and strongly at the risk of their popularity, the parents laid down the rules for the party and wouldn't accept any arguments

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as in specifies

to give the rules about (something) clearly and exactly the supervisor laid down the procedure for a complaint of sexual harassment

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as in relinquishes

to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress commanded the surrounded troops to lay down their weapons

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for lays down

Verb

The legislation enacts new work requirements and greater vetting for Medicaid, the low-income program that thousands of Alaskans depend on for healthcare.

— Matthew Choi The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 17 Oct. 2026
The rest of the network enacts the decision, as other genes are activated or suppressed farther downstream, but isn’t active in it.

— Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of enacts

Verb

This fertile period of creative and intellectual life wasn’t even a renaissance, one partygoer declares.

— David Fear, Rolling Stone, 16 Oct. 2026
The treaty also declares that space is a global commons that can be used only for peaceful purposes.

— Stephanie Liechtenstein, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of declares

Verb

Could this be the anarchic mind that emerges when the ego relinquishes its hold?

— Michael Pollan, The Atlantic, 26 Jan. 2026
If a player chooses not to negotiate with the Panthers, that player will be unable to sign elsewhere, unless Carolina relinquishes his rights by not offering him a tender.

— Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 11 Jan. 2026

Definition of relinquishes

Verb

Even if October passes without another conflagration, November brings its own hazards.

— Ali Vaez, Time, 21 Oct. 2026
Equatic pumps seawater through an electrolyzer, where an electric current passes through a sandwich of plastic and metal plates and separates the water into two streams, one alkaline and one acidic, while also producing oxygen and hydrogen.

— Alec Luhn, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of passes

Verb

The complaint asserts defamation and, as an alternative, a violation of Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.

— Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2026
The filing asserts that the site, which has since been taken down, discussed her past personal relationships, including a divorce from David Ronson (sibling of DJ Mark Ronson and fashion designer Charlotte Ronson).

— Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of asserts

Verb

People in search of healthcare do not care which national story others wish to project onto a molecule, device, or platform, which regulatory philosophy defines it, or which flag stands behind a laboratory.

— Ruby Wang, semafor.com, 27 Oct. 2026
The memo, which was circulated internally in September and posted to the company's website on Tuesday, revises how the company defines the role of software development engineers and managers in the age of AI.

— Annie Palmer, CNBC, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of defines

Verb

Using photogammetry, a technique which renders 2D surfaces into 3D models, and game engines, Montoya directs a virtual drone that hovers over the ruins of cities and its strange, frozen residents.

— Shanti Escalante-De Mattei, ARTnews.com, 26 Oct. 2026
Cinematographer Lukasz Zal, who also shot Ida and Cold War, renders Fatherland in the same satiny black and white, as well as the same serenely squarish, or Academy, aspect ratio.

— Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of renders

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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lays by

lays down

lays eyes on

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“Lays down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lays%20down. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of lays down

verb

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