Lay out or layout?
lay out is a verb meaning “To expend or contribute money to an expense or purchase”; layout is a noun meaning “A structured arrangement of items within certain limits”. Use lay out as a verb and layout as a noun (layout is also a verb: “to layout (plan for an arrangement)”). lay out is written as two words and layout as one word; they are used differently.
What is the difference between lay out and layout?
| lay out | layout | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | verb, noun | noun, verb |
| Meaning | To expend or contribute money to an expense or purchase To arrange (physically) in a certain way, so as to spread or space apart; to display (e.g. merchandise or a collection) | A structured arrangement of items within certain limits A plan for such arrangement to layout (plan for an arrangement) |
| Example | She laid out hundreds of dollars to throw a great party | The garden’s layout was designed for easy access to all plants |
| Forms | none | layouts |
| Pronunciation | /ˌleɪ ˈaʊt/ | /ˈleɪ.aʊt/ |
| In writing | not counted (the list counts single words) | 12 times per million words |
Sources: lay out and layout in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of lay out and layout
lay out
- 1
To expend or contribute money to an expense or purchase
She laid out hundreds of dollars to throw a great party
- 2
datedDated form of layout
- 3
To arrange (physically) in a certain way, so as to spread or space apart; to display (e.g. merchandise or a collection)
She laid the blocks out in a circle on the floor
- 4
To explain; to interpret
Let me lay it out for you: you're not going to get a better opportunity than this one
- 5
To arrange; to design; to concoct; to think up
He began to lay out the hull for an inexpensive but fast littoral drone
- 6
To prepare a body for burial
They laid him out beautifully on a bier draped in satin
- 7
UScolloquialTo render (someone) unconscious; to knock out; to cause to fall to the floor; to kill
I laid him out on the sidewalk after he tried to grab me
- 8
colloquialTo scold or berate
She really laid him out for taking the money and then lying to try to cover it up
layout
- 1
A structured arrangement of items within certain limits
The garden’s layout was designed for easy access to all plants
- 2
to layout (plan for an arrangement)
- 3
A plan for such arrangement
The architect presented the building’s floor layout
- 4
The act of laying out something
- 5
The process of arranging editorial content, advertising, graphics and other information
The magazine changed its page layout to look more modern
- 6
A map or a drawing of a construction site showing the position of roads, buildings or other constructions
- 7
A specification of an integrated circuit showing the position of the physical components that will implement the schematic in silicon
- 8
The customizable features of a user's profile (such as profile picture, screen name, and bio) collectively
He admired the efficient layout of the new website
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, lay out or layout?
lay out is a phrase, which the list of single words does not count; layout 12 times per million words.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How many people search lay out vs layout?
“lay out vs layout” is searched about 40 times a month on Google and 10 on Bing in the United States. Google counts close variants of a query together (“layout vs lay out”, “lay out or layout”).
Sources: Google Ads keyword data through DataForSEO and Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, the average month from September 2025 to August 2026.