# layman

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈleɪmən/ · frequency rank #31,632

## Definitions
1. Layperson, someone who is not an ordained cleric or member of the clergy.
2. Someone who is not a professional in a given field.
3. A common person.
4. A person who is untrained or lacks knowledge of a subject.
5. Lay-sister or lay-brother, person received into a convent of monks, following the vows, but not being member of the order.

## Etymology
From Middle English layman, lay man, equivalent to lay (“non-clergy”) + man. Cognate with Old Frisian lēkmann, lēkmonn (“layman”), obsolete Dutch leekeman (“layman”), Old High German leihman (“layman”), Danish lægmand (“layman”), Swedish lekman (“layman”), Norwegian lekmann (“layman”), Icelandic leikmaður (“layman”).

## Easily confused with
- **Lyman** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/layman-vs-lyman)
- **Layton** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/layman-vs-layton)
- **lama** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lama-vs-layman)
- **Lamar** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lamar-vs-layman)
- **Layla** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/layla-vs-layman)
- **Laban** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/laban-vs-layman)

## Common misspellings (9)
`alyman`, `lamyan`, `layamn`, `laymann`, `laymman`, `laymna`, `layyman`, `llayman`, `lyaman`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/layman