How could I lay?

Lay or lie? Everyone mixes them up!

Lay means to put something down. Lie means to rest your own body flat.

Lay always needs an object. You lay something down, like a book, a plate or a baby.

Lie has no object. You just lie down yourself.

Here is the trick. Ask yourself: is something being put down? Then use lay.

Now the tricky part. The past tense of lie is lay. Yes, the same word!

And the past of lay is laid. Today I lay the book, yesterday I laid it.

Here is a famous example. A metal band is called As I Lay Dying.

The band formed in San Diego, California, in the year 2000. The title comes from a famous old book, As I Lay Dying, written in 1930 by William Faulkner.

In that title, the person is the one resting, so strictly it should be lie. Titles can bend rules. Let me show you the correct sentences side by side. Quick test. Which sentence is correct?

• Title breaks the rule

Remember: lay puts something down, lie means you rest yourself, and the past of lie is lay.

• Lay = put. Lie = rest.