What does layer mean?

Definitions for layer
ˈleɪ ərlay·er

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word layer.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. layer, bednoun

    single thickness of usually some homogeneous substance

    "slices of hard-boiled egg on a bed of spinach"

  2. layernoun

    a relatively thin sheetlike expanse or region lying over or under another

  3. level, layer, stratumnoun

    an abstract place usually conceived as having depth

    "a good actor communicates on several levels"; "a simile has at least two layers of meaning"; "the mind functions on many strata simultaneously"

  4. layernoun

    a hen that lays eggs

  5. layerverb

    thin structure composed of a single thickness of cells

  6. layerverb

    make or form a layer

    "layer the different colored sands"

Wiktionary

  1. layernoun

    A single thickness of some material covering a surface

  2. layernoun

    A (usually) horizontal deposit; a stratum.

  3. layernoun

    A person who lays things, such as tiles.

  4. layernoun

    A hen kept to lay eggs.

  5. layernoun

    An item of clothing worn under or over another.

  6. layernoun

    A shoot of a plant, laid underground for growth.

  7. layerverb

    to cut or divide (something) into layers

  8. layerverb

    to arrange (something) in layers.

    Layer the ribbons on top of one another to make an attractive pattern.

  9. Etymology: From leyer, leyare, from lay + -er

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Layernoun

    Etymology: from lay.

    A layer of rich mould beneath, and about this natural earth to nourish the fibres. John Evelyn, Kalendar.

    The terrestrial matter is disposed into strata or layers, placed one upon another, in like manner as any earthy sediment, settling down from a flood in great quantity, will naturally be. John Woodward, Natural History.

    Many trees may be propagated by layers: this is to be performed by slitting the branches a little way, and laying them under the mould about half a foot; the ground should be first made very light, and, after they are laid, they should have a little water given them: if they do not comply well in the laying of them down, they must be pegged down with a hook or two; and if they have taken sufficient root by the next winter, they must be cut off from the main plants, and planted in the nursery: some twist the branch, or bare the rind; and if it be out of the reach of the ground, they fasten a tub or basket near the branch, which they fill with good mould, and lay the branch in it. Philip Miller.

    Transplant also carnation seedlings, give your layers fresh earth, and set them in the shade for a week. John Evelyn, Kal.

    The oldest are always reckoned the best sitters, and the youngest the best layers. John Mortimer, Husbandry.

ChatGPT

  1. layer

    A layer is a level, stratum, or division of material or immaterial things, often one of several parallel or stacked sections. It may refer to a coating, sheet, quantity, or thickness of material spread out or covering something, or a portion or level within a system, structure, or process that exists with others like it.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Layernoun

    one who, or that which, lays

  2. Layernoun

    that which is laid; a stratum; a bed; one thickness, course, or fold laid over another; as, a layer of clay or of sand in the earth; a layer of bricks, or of plaster; the layers of an onion

  3. Layernoun

    a shoot or twig of a plant, not detached from the stock, laid under ground for growth or propagation

  4. Layernoun

    an artificial oyster bed

  5. Etymology: [See Lay to cause to lie flat.]

Wikidata

  1. Layer

    In object-oriented design, a layer is a group of classes that have the same set of link-time module dependencies to other modules. In other words, a layer is a group of reusable components that are reusable in similar circumstances. In programming languages, the layer distinction is often expressed as "import" dependencies between software modules. Layers are often arranged in a tree-form hierarchy, with dependency relationships as links between the layers. Dependency relationships between layers are often either inheritance, composition or aggregation relationships, but other kinds of dependencies can also be used. Layers is an architectural pattern described in many books, for example Pattern-Oriented Software Architecture

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Layer

    lā′ėr, n. a stratum—better Lair (q.v.). See Lay.

CrunchBase

  1. Layer

    Layer is the open communications Layer for the InternetApps can build messaging, voice and video into your app in minutes.We started Layer to make rich, secure, scalable communications easy.Layer is the open communications layer for the Internet, enabling the power of messaging, voice and video calling in any mobile or web product.The Layer team is full of developers and designers passionate about enabling people to communicate better across all the products they use.

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. LAYER

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Layer is ranked #20165 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The Layer surname appeared 1,323 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname Layer.

    90.7% or 1,200 total occurrences were White.
    4.3% or 58 total occurrences were Black.
    2.7% or 36 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
    1.6% or 22 total occurrences were of two or more races.

Matched Categories

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'layer' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #3801

  2. Nouns Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'layer' in Nouns Frequency: #1142

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

Anagrams for layer »

  1. early

  2. relay

  3. re-lay

How to pronounce layer?

How to say layer in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of layer in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of layer in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Examples of layer in a Sentence

  1. Joshua Zeichner:

    Soap has a high pH that can disrupt the outer layer of your skin and cause inflammation and dryness.

  2. Joanna Barstow:

    Gliese 1214 b is a type of planet we call a Super-Earth -- a bit bigger than Earth, a bit smaller than Neptune. It's not dense enough to be rocky so it's probably like a warm mini-Neptune. There's nothing like it in our solar system and we don't really know what to expect, on my wish list for the future is a telescope to study exoplanets like Gliese 1214 b in more detail. I want to know what's going on beneath that cloud layer !

  3. Dave Marver:

    So, we have a multi-layer design that does both of those things, reduces concussion risk and protects against skull fracture.

  4. Sara Greenstein:

    For most cloth face masks, there is no inner filtration layer that traps harmful particles.

  5. Junichi Ishikawa:

    China looks to be the main theme for 2016, as developments there could unsettle equities while disrupting the Fed's intended rate hike schedule, china risk adds a layer of support to the yen, which already looks to appreciate this year as Japan's current account surplus grows at a faster-than-expected pace.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

layer#1#2899#10000

Translations for layer

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

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"layer." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 17 Jan. 2025. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/layer>.

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