Word
lying
Phoneticsly·ing
US/ˈɫaɪɪŋ/
UK/lˈaɪɪŋ/
Definitions
01telling untruths
n. the act of saying things that you know are not true.
n. the practice or act of making false statements with the intent to deceive.
“He realized that lying to his parents only made the situation worse.”
“The witness was accused of persistent lying during the cross-examination, which severely undermined the credibility of the defense.”
Usage
Uncountable when referring to the general habit; countable when referring to specific instances.
Synonyms
Antonyms
02resting horizontally
v. the action of being in a flat position on a surface, like a bed.
v. the present participle of the intransitive verb 'lie', indicating a state of horizontal recumbency.
“I spent the whole afternoon lying on the grass and reading.”
“Lying motionless on the forest floor, the researcher observed the rare birds without disturbing their natural behavior.”
Usage
Intransitive; does not take a direct object.
Pitfall
The book is laying on the table.
The book is lying on the table.
Use 'lying' for something that is already in a flat position. Use 'laying' only if you are putting it there now.
03untruthful
adj. describing someone who often tells lies.
adj. characterised by the habit of telling lies; mendacious.
“Don't believe a word he says; he is a lying cheat.”
“The politician was forced to resign after a series of lying statements regarding his campaign finances came to light.”
Usage
Usually placed before the noun it describes.
Synonyms
Etymology
lie (“to rest in a horizontal position”) + -ing.
lie (“to intentionally give false information”) + -ing.
lye. (a chemical liquid)
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/lying