What is the difference between lying and lieing

A lie is an untruth. The verb lie means to tell a falsehood. Sometimes children lie to get out of trouble. If to tell an untruth were the only meaning of lie , using these two words properly would be less of a challenge. However, lie can also mean to recline or to rest in a flat position. Notice this example:. The fat cat likes to lie in the sun. This mnemonic should help you remember that lay , which begins with the letters L-A, has a long A sound like its definition: to place. On the other hand, lie , which starts with the letters L-I, has a long I sound like its definition: to recline.

Again, here are a few rules to help you. In the present tense, you often use a direct object with lay. Look back at the examples again to see these rules in play. When you are talking about reclining, the past tense of lie is lay! Beware of spelling! The present participle of lie is not lieing. If you're someone who cares about writing and speaking carefully, though, your communication skills will be strengthened by keeping them straight, so here's the lowdown. Lay's most common meaning is "to place something or someone down in a flat position.

Lie , on the other hand, is intransitive. It's for something or someone moving on their own or something that's already in position: You can lie down there. You can lie there all day. That's tricky enough, but it gets worse when we start using the words beyond the present tense.

Here's lay in context in tenses that show its principal forms:. Did you catch that? For lay , we have lay , laid , have laid , laying ; for lie , we have lie , lay , have lain , lying. And then there's the unrelated verb meaning "to tell an untruth. Yes, it's really that complicated. We apologize. Orlandi told The Daily Beast that Agca might be lying , but he should still be heard. Mills was lying on the sidewalk, dying, right in front of people trained to save him.

Suddenly, light flooded the room, and I found myself lying on a filthy orange sofa across the room from where my rape occurred. If Jackie is lying , she will likely—and sadly—suffer for it. This, however, did not apply to the waters lying directly around the Poloe and Flatland groups.

Eggs and nestlings were found lying on the bare soil at the inner ends of the burrows; no nesting material was found. The Seven-score and four on the six middle Bells, the treble leading, and the tenor lying behind every change, makes good Musick.

Indeed, a score of bodies lying there had not been seen by Malcolm during his first frenzied examination of the house. Last night I saw Jean Baptiste lying prone upon the floor, and knew that she had beaten him down to it, and he had not resisted.