Laying down the law on 'lie' versus 'lay'

A. I take my shoes off, turn back the covers, fluff the pillow, and lay down.

B. A layer of dust was laying all over the old books.

C. The toddler laid on the floor during his tantrum.

D. According to the defendant's testimony, he had lain the money on the desk.

E. For the last time, lay down and be quiet!

Answer: Would you be surprised to learn that none of the sentences is grammatically correct?

The words "lay" and "lie" can trip up even the most experienced writers among us. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, these two verbs "have been confused for centuries."

Let's break the cycle now. Here's how to avoid getting it wrong:

Understand that the words "lay" and "lie" mean different things: Some people think that "lay" and "lie" are synonyms, thus interchangeable. This is not the case. Lie means to recline. Lay, on the other hand, means to put or place something (or someone) onto something else. See how different they are? For example, you would lay (put/place) the test paper on the table, but you would lie (recline) in your bed after completing said test.

Understand how tense works: If we spoke in simple present tense all the time, we might not have such a problem with "lie" and "lay." But that would make for some pretty boring speech ("I go to the store. I buy chocolate. I eat it." Yawn). Tenses allow us to add a sense of time to language. The downside? The freedom to use words to transcend time comes with a price, particularly when it comes to certain "difficult" verbs. Here's a handy chart showing the various tenses of "lie" and "lay." (Note that we have omitted some, such as the present and past subjunctive tenses. No need to get too fancy.)

It may help to just memorize the chart, as in "Lie, lying, lay, lain, lie, lay, laying, laid, laid, lay," but because that's a rather mind-numbing activity, we've created a poem for you to memorize instead.

Understand where the confusion lies: "What's the simple past tense of "lie?" That's right, it's "lay." Now, what's the simple present tense of "lay?" It's lay! This is likely the biggest culprit for lie/lay confusion—the fact that the simple past of "lie" and the simple present of "lay" are the same word. But remember, they mean two completely different things. One means to rest in the past; the other means to put or place something (or someone) upon something else in the present. Yes, it's a brain freeze-but once you get it, you'll know it forever.

The problem? As soon as the blinders come off, you'll see (and hear) lie/lay errors everywhere—casual conversation, signs, public service announcements, even news articles. It may drive you just a little bit crazy, but then, when it comes to grammar, no one ever said knowledge was bliss.