What does Lie mean?
Definitions for Lie
laɪlie
This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word Lie.
Princeton's WordNet
lie, prevaricationnoun
a statement that deviates from or perverts the truth
Lie, Trygve Lie, Trygve Halvden Lienoun
Norwegian diplomat who was the first Secretary General of the United Nations (1896-1968)
lieverb
position or manner in which something is situated
lieverb
be located or situated somewhere; occupy a certain position
lieverb
be lying, be prostrate; be in a horizontal position
"The sick man lay in bed all day"; "the books are lying on the shelf"
dwell, consist, lie, lie inverb
originate (in)
"The problems dwell in the social injustices in this country"
lieverb
be and remain in a particular state or condition
"lie dormant"
lieverb
tell an untruth; pretend with intent to deceive
"Don't lie to your parents"; "She lied when she told me she was only 29"
lie, restverb
have a place in relation to something else
"The fate of Bosnia lies in the hands of the West"; "The responsibility rests with the Allies"
lie down, lieverb
assume a reclining position
"lie down on the bed until you feel better"
Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
Lienoun
Any thing impregnated with some other body; as, soap or salt.
Etymology: lie, French.
Chamber-lie breads fleas like a loach. William Shakespeare.
All liquid things concocted by heat become yellow; as, lye, wort, &c. Henry Peacham, on Drawing.
Lienoun
Etymology: lie, French.
My name’s Macbeth.
—— The devil himself could not pronounce a title
More hateful to mine ear.
—— No; nor more fearful.
—— Thou liest, abhorred tyrant; with my sword
I’ll prove the lie thou speak’st. William Shakespeare, Macbeth.A lye is properly an outward signification of something contrary to, or at least beside, the inward sense of the mind; so that when one thing is signified or expressed, and the same thing not meant, or intended, that is properly a lye. South.
Truth is the object of our understanding, as good is of our will; and the understanding can no more be delighted with a lye, than the will can chuse an apparent evil. Dryden.
When I hear my neighbour speak that which is not true, and I say to him, this is not true, or this is false, I only convey to him the naked idea of his error; this is the primary idea: but if I say it is a lie, the word lie carries also a secondary idea; for it implies both the falshood of the speech, and my reproach and censure of the speaker. Isaac Watts, Logick.
That lie shall lye so heavy on my sword,
That it shall render vengeance and revenge;
Till thou the lie giver, and that lie, rest
In earth as quiet as thy father’s skull. William Shakespeare, Rich. II.It is a contradiction to suppose, that whole nations of men should unanimously give the lie to what, by the most invincible evidence, every one of them knew to be true. John Locke.
Men will give their own experience the lye, rather than admit of any thing disagreeing with these tenets. John Locke.
The cock and fox, the fool and knave imply;
The truth is moral, though the tale a lie. Dryden.To Lieverb
Etymology: leogan , Saxon; liegen, Dutch.
I know not where he lodges; and for me to devise a lodging, and say, he lies here, or he lies there, were to lie in mine own throat. William Shakespeare, Othello.
If a soul lye unto his neighbour in that which was delivered him to keep, he shall restore that which was delivered. Levit. vi. 1.
Should I lye against my right? Job xxxiv. 6.
Inform us, will the emp’ror treat?
Or do the prints and papers lye? Alexander Pope.To LIEverb
pret. I lay; I have lain or lien.
Etymology: leogan , Saxon; liegen, Dutch.
Death lies on her like an untimely flow’r;
Upon the sweetest flow’r of all the field. William Shakespeare.Lie heavy on him, earth, for he
Laid many a heavy load on thee. Epitaph on Vanbrugh.All the kings of the nations lie in glory, every one in his own house. Isa. xiv. 18.
I will lie with my fathers, and thou shalt carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in your burying place. Gen. xlvii. 30.
How many good young princes would do so; their fathers lying so sick as yours at this time is. William Shakespeare, Henry IV.
My little daughter lieth at the point of death; I pray thee come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed. Mark v. 23.
The watchful traveller,
That by the moon’s mistaken light did rise,
Lay down again, and clos’d his weary eyes. Dryden.Forlorn he must, and persecuted flie;
Climb the steep mountain, in the cavern lie. Matthew Prior.I have seen where copperas is made great variety of them, divers of which I have yet lying by me. Boyle.
The Spaniards have but one temptation to quarrel with us, the recovering of Jamaica, for that has ever lien at their hearts. William Temple.
If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. Gen. iv. 7.
We have gone through deserts, where there lay no way. Wisd. v. 7.
I fly
To those happy climes that lie,
Where day never shuts his eye,
Up in the broad fields of the sky. John Milton.There lies our way, and that our passage home. Dryd.
Envy lies between beings equal in nature, though unequal in circumstances. Jeremy Collier, of Envy.
The business of a tutor, rightly employed, lies out of the road. John Locke, on Education.
What lies beyond our positive idea towards infinity, lies in obscurity, and has the undeterminate confusion of a negative idea. John Locke.
Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Psal. lxxxviii. 7.
He that commits a sin shall find
The pressing guilt lie heavy on his mind,
Though bribes or favour shall assert his cause. Thomas Creech.Shew the power of religion, in abating that particular anguish which seems to lie so heavy on Leonora. Addison.
Suppose kings, besides the entertainment of luxury, should have spent their time, at least what lay upon their hands, in chemistry, it cannot be denied but princes may pass their time advantageously that way. William Temple.
I would recommend the studies of knowledge to the female world, that they may not be at a loss how to employ those hours that lie upon their hands. Joseph Addison, Guardian.
If he should intend his voyage towards my wife, I would turn her loose to him; and what he gets more of her than sharp words, let it lie on my head. William Shakespeare.
If money go before, all ways do lie open. William Shakespeare.
The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth. Isa.
The seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still. Exod.
Do not think that the knowledge of any particular subject cannot be improved, merely because it has lain without improvement. Isaac Watts, Improvement of the Mind.
Many things in them lie concealed to us, which they who were concerned understood at first sight. John Locke.
Your imprisonment shall not be long;
I will deliver you, or else lye for you. William Shakespeare, Rich. III.Why will you lie pining and pinching yourself in such a lonesome, starving course of life. Roger L'Estrange, Fables.
The generality of mankind lie pecking at one another, till one by one they are all torn to pieces. Roger L'Estrange, Fab.
Are the gods to do your drudgery, and you lie bellowing with your finger in your mouth? Roger L'Estrange, Fables.
To see a hated person superior, and to lie under the anguish of a disadvantage, is far enough from diversion. Collier.
It is but a very small comfort, that a plain man, lying under a sharp fit of the stone for a week, receives from this fine sentence. John Tillotson, Sermons.
As a man should always be upon his guard against the vices to which he is most exposed, so we should take a more than ordinary care not to lie at the mercy of the weather in our moral conduct. Joseph Addison, Freeholder.
The maintenance of the clergy is precarious, and collected from a most miserable race of farmers, at whose mercy every minister lies to be defrauded. Jonathan Swift.
The image of it gives me content already; and I trust it will grow to a most prosperous perfection.
—— It lies much in your holding up; haste you speedily to Angelo. William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure.He that thinks that diversion may not lie in hard labour, forgets the early rising, and hard riding of huntsmen. John Locke.
He shews himself very malicious if he knows I deserve credit, and yet goes about to blast it, as much as in him lies. Edward Stillingfleet, on Idolatry.
Do’st thou endeavour, as much as in thee lies, to preserve the lives of all men. Brian Duppa, Rules for Devotion.
Mars is the warrior’s god; in him it lies
On whom he favours to confer the prize. Dryden.Ev’ry thing that heard him play,
Ev’n the billows of the sea,
Hung their heads, and then lay by;
In sweet musick is such art,
Killing care, and grief of heart,
Fall asleep, or hearing die. William Shakespeare, Henry VIII.The leopard shall lie down with the kid. Isa. xi. 6.
The needy shall lie down in safety. Isa. xiv. 30.
His bones are full of the sin of his youth, which shall lie down with him in the dust. Job xx. 11.
As for all other good women that love to do but little work, how handsome it is to lie in and sleep, or to louse themselves in the sun-shine, they that have been but a while in Ireland can well witness. Edmund Spenser, on Ireland.
You confine yourself most unreasonably. Come; you must go visit the lady that lies in. William Shakespeare, Coriolanus.
She had lain in, and her right breast had been apostemated. Richard Wiseman, Surgery.
The doctor has practised both by sea and land, and therefore cures the green sickness and lyings in. Spectator.
When Florimel design’d to lie privately in;
She chose with such prudence her pangs to conceal,
That her nurse, nay her midwife, scarce heard her once squeal. Matthew Prior.Hysterical affections are contracted by accidents in lying in. John Arbuthnot, on Diet.
A generous person will lie under a great disadvantage. George Smalridge, Sermons.
This mistake never ought to be imputed as a fault to John Dryden, but to those who suffered so noble a genius to lie under the necessity of it. Alexander Pope, Iliad. Notes on the.
Europe lay then under a deep lethargy, and was no otherwise to be rescued but by one that would cry mightily. Francis Atterbury.
These are not places merely of favour, the charge of souls lies upon them; the greatest account whereof will be required at their hands. Francis Bacon, Advice to Villiers.
It should lie upon him to make out how matter, by undirected motion, could at first necessarily fall, without ever erring or miscarrying, into such a curious formation of human bodies. Richard Bentley, Sermons.
Pardon me, Bassanio,
For by this ring she lay with me. William Shakespeare.
Wikipedia
Lie
A lie is an assertion that is believed to be false, typically used with the purpose of deceiving or misleading someone. The practice of communicating lies is called lying. A person who communicates a lie may be termed a liar. Lies can be interpreted as deliberately false statements or misleading statements. Lies may also serve a variety of instrumental, interpersonal, or psychological functions for the individuals who use them. Generally, the term "lie" carries a negative connotation, and depending on the context a person who communicates a lie may be subject to social, legal, religious, or criminal sanctions; for instance, perjury, or the act of lying under oath, can result in criminal and civil charges being pressed against the perjurer. Although people in many cultures believe that deception can be detected by observing nonverbal behaviors (e.g. not making eye contact, fidgeting, stuttering) research indicates that people overestimate both the significance of such cues and their ability to make accurate judgements about deception. More generally, people's ability to make true judgments is affected by biases towards accepting incoming information and interpreting feelings as evidence of truth. People do not always check incoming assertions against their memory.
ChatGPT
lie
A lie is a false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive or mislead. It involves expressing something that one knows to be untrue or not what it is represented to be, often with the goal of gaining an advantage or hiding the truth.
Webster Dictionary
Lienoun
see Lye
Lienoun
a falsehood uttered or acted for the purpose of deception; an intentional violation of truth; an untruth spoken with the intention to deceive
Lienoun
a fiction; a fable; an untruth
Lienoun
anything which misleads or disappoints
Lieverb
to utter falsehood with an intention to deceive; to say or do that which is intended to deceive another, when he a right to know the truth, or when morality requires a just representation
Lie
to rest extended on the ground, a bed, or any support; to be, or to put one's self, in an horizontal position, or nearly so; to be prostate; to be stretched out; -- often with down, when predicated of living creatures; as, the book lies on the table; the snow lies on the roof; he lies in his coffin
Lie
to be situated; to occupy a certain place; as, Ireland lies west of England; the meadows lie along the river; the ship lay in port
Lie
to abide; to remain for a longer or shorter time; to be in a certain state or condition; as, to lie waste; to lie fallow; to lie open; to lie hid; to lie grieving; to lie under one's displeasure; to lie at the mercy of the waves; the paper does not lie smooth on the wall
Lie
to be or exist; to belong or pertain; to have an abiding place; to consist; -- with in
Lie
to lodge; to sleep
Lie
to be still or quiet, like one lying down to rest
Lie
to be sustainable; to be capable of being maintained
Lienoun
the position or way in which anything lies; the lay, as of land or country
Etymology: [OE. lien, liggen, AS. licgan; akin to D. liggen, OHG. ligen, licken, G. liegen, Icel. liggja, Sw. ligga, Dan. ligge, Goth. ligan, Russ. lejate, L. lectus bed, Gr. le`chos bed, le`xasqai to lie. Cf. Lair, Law, Lay, v. t., Litter, Low, adj.]
Wikidata
Lie
A lie is a false statement to a person or group made by another person or group who knows it is not the whole truth, intentionally. A barefaced lie is one that is obviously a lie to those hearing it. A Big Lie is a lie which attempts to trick the victim into believing something major which will likely be contradicted by some information the victim already possesses, or by their common sense. To bluff is to pretend to have a capability or intention one does not actually possess. Bullshit is often used to make the audience believe that one knows far more about the topic by feigning total certainty or making probable predictions. An emergency lie is a strategic lie told when the truth may not be told because, for example, harm to a third party would result. An exaggeration occurs when the most fundamental aspects of a statement are true, but only to a certain degree. A fabrication is a lie told when someone submits a statement as truth, without knowing for certain whether or not it actually is true. A half-truth is a deceptive statement that includes some element of truth. The statement might be partly true, the statement may be totally true but only part of the whole truth, or it may utilize some deceptive element, such as improper punctuation, or double meaning, especially if the intent is to deceive, evade, blame or misrepresent the truth. An honest lie is characterized by verbal statements or actions that inaccurately describe history, background, and present situations. Perjury is the act of lying or making verifiably false statements on a material matter under oath or affirmation in a court of law, or in any of various sworn statements in writing. White lies are minor lies which could be considered to be harmless, or even beneficial, in the long term.
Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
Lie
lī, n. anything meant to deceive: an intentional violation of truth: anything that misleads.—v.i. to utter falsehood with an intention to deceive: to make a false representation:—pr.p. ly′ing; pa.t. and pa.p. lied.—Lie in one's throat, to lie shamelessly; Lie out of whole cloth, to lie without any foundation whatever; Give the lie to, to charge with falsehood; White lie, a conventional phrase not strictly true: a well-meant falsehood. [A.S. leógan (lyge, a falsehood), prov. Eng. lig; Dut. liegen, Goth. liugan, Ger. lügen, to lie.]
Lie
lī, v.i. to rest in a reclining posture: to lean: to press upon: to be situated: to abide: to consist: (law) to be sustainable: (Shak.) to be imprisoned: to lodge, pass the night:—pr.p. ly′ing; pa.t. lay; pa.p. lain, (B.) lī′en.—n. manner of lying: relative position: an animal's lair: (golf) position of the ball for striking.—ns. Lī′er, Lie′-abed′, one who lies late—also adj.—Lie along, to be extended at full length; Lie at one's door, to be directly imputable to one; Lie at one's heart, to be an object of interest or affection to one; Lie by, to take rest from labour: (Shak.) to be under the charge of; Lie hard or heavy on, upon, (Shak.) to, to oppress, burden; Lie in, to be in childbed; Lie in one, to be in one's power; Lie in the way, to be ready, at hand: to be an obstacle; Lie in wait, to lie in ambush; Lie low, to conceal one's actions or intentions; Lie on, upon, to be incumbent on; Lie on the hands, to remain unused or unoccupied; Lie over, to be deferred to a future occasion; Lie to, to be checked in sailing; Lie under, to be subject to or oppressed by; Lie up, to abstain from work; Lie with, to lodge or sleep with: to have carnal knowledge of; Lying-in hospital, a hospital for those about to become mothers. [A.S. licgan; Ger. liegen; Goth. ligan.]
The Roycroft Dictionary
lie
The weapon of defense that kind Providence provides for the protection of the oppressed.
The Foolish Dictionary, by Gideon Wurdz
LIE
A very poor substitute for the truth but the only one discovered up to date.
Military Dictionary and Gazetteer
lie
To be situated; to occupy a fixed place; as, the troops lie encamped at Washington. To lie in ambush, to be posted in such a manner as to be able to surprise your enemy, should he presume to advance without having previously cleared the woods, hedges, etc. To lie in wait, to take a position unobserved by the enemy, and to remain under arms, in the expectation of suddenly falling upon his flanks or rear. To lie under cover, to be under the protection of a battery, or to be sheltered by a wood, etc. To lie under arms, to remain in a state ready for action.
Suggested Resources
LIE
What does LIE stand for? -- Explore the various meanings for the LIE acronym on the Abbreviations.com website.
Lie
Lie vs. Lye -- In this Grammar.com article you will learn the differences between the words Lie and Lye.
Lie
Lay vs. Lie -- In this Grammar.com article you will learn the differences between the words Lay and Lie.
Surnames Frequency by Census Records
LIE
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Lie is ranked #23472 in terms of the most common surnames in America.
The Lie surname appeared 1,083 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname Lie.
72.3% or 784 total occurrences were Asian.
14.9% or 162 total occurrences were White.
6.7% or 73 total occurrences were of two or more races.
3.5% or 38 total occurrences were American Indian or Alaskan Native.
1.4% or 16 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
0.9% or 10 total occurrences were Black.
Matched Categories
British National Corpus
Spoken Corpus Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'Lie' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #2421
Written Corpus Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'Lie' in Written Corpus Frequency: #2562
Nouns Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'Lie' in Nouns Frequency: #1720
Verbs Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'Lie' in Verbs Frequency: #111
Anagrams for Lie »
ile
lei
Eli
Numerology
Chaldean Numerology
The numerical value of Lie in Chaldean Numerology is: 9
Pythagorean Numerology
The numerical value of Lie in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8
Examples of Lie in a Sentence
I don't think I really need to cite chapter and verse to a bunch of people from South Dakota about integrity and honesty -- and why we don't lie in public life.
Simple ideas lie within the reach only of complex minds.
Silence is often the ultimate and most evident lie.
I don't know why it is we are in such a hurry to get up when we fall down. You might think we would lie there and rest a while.
Col. McCraw has continued to -- whether you want to call it -- lie, leak, mislead or misstate information in order to distance his own troopers and Rangers from the response. Every briefing he leaves out the number of his own officers and Rangers that were on-scene that day.
Popularity rank by frequency of use
References
Translations for Lie
From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary
- كذبةArabic
- lhátCzech
- liggeDanish
- LügeGerman
- ψέμαGreek
- mensogiEsperanto
- mentiraSpanish
- دروغPersian
- valehdellaFinnish
- mensongeFrench
- bréagIrish
- hazugságHungarian
- ստելArmenian
- kebohonganIndonesian
- menzognaItalian
- שקרHebrew
- ಸುಳ್ಳುKannada
- mendaciumLatin
- liggenDutch
- å liggeNorwegian
- kłamstwoPolish
- mentiraPortuguese
- minciunăRomanian
- lognSwedish
- பொய்Tamil
- YalanTurkish
- брешутьUkrainian
- جھوٹ بولناUrdu
- nói dốiVietnamese
- ליגןYiddish
- 谎言Chinese
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