lie

/laɪ̯/

//laɪ̯// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"lie" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“lie” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #1,530) as a verb. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#1,530
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To rest in a horizontal position on a surface.

Corpus desk

Index EN-lie · lie · English

lie · rank #1,530 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,530
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH keeping

Nearest frequency peer: keeping (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “lie”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “lie” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

lie vs Lt
0% similar
lie vs lo
33% similar
lie vs LP
0% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for lie
PropertyValue
Headwordlie
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/laɪ̯/
Letters3
Frequency rank#1,530
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “lie” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). lie lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for lie is neighbouring look-alikes ("Lt", "lo", …), not just typos; it is averb pronounced /laɪ̯/. Frequency #1,530 among 2,297 “L” headwords. 9 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Zero misspellings are on record for lie in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Lt", "lo", "LP", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English lien, liggen, from Old English liċġan, from Proto-West Germanic *liggjan, from Proto-Germanic *ligjaną, from Proto-Indo-European *legʰ-. Cognates Cognate with Yola lee, lidge (“to lie”), leigh, leiough (“to idle”), North Frisian lade, la… The correct English form is lie, spelled L-I-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To rest in a horizontal position on a surface.
  2. 2
    To be placed or situated.
  3. 3
    To abide; to remain for a longer or shorter time; to be in a certain state or condition.
  4. 4
    Used with in: to be or exist; to belong or pertain; to have an abiding place; to consist.
  5. 5
    Used with with: to have sexual relations with.
  6. 6
    Used with on/upon: to be incumbent (on); to be the responsibility of a person.
  7. 7
    To lodge; to sleep.
  8. 8
    To be still or quiet, like one lying down to rest.
  9. 9
    To be sustainable; to be capable of being maintained.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how lie appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The book lies on the table; the snow lies on the roof; he lies in his coffin.
  2. Under an oak were lying asleep a pair of shepherds.

Etymology

From Middle English lien, liggen, from Old English liċġan, from Proto-West Germanic *liggjan, from Proto-Germanic *ligjaną, from Proto-Indo-European *legʰ-. Cognates Cognate with Yola lee, lidge (“to lie”), leigh, leiough (“to idle”), North Frisian lade, lai, laie, lei, lii, läde, läie (“to lie; to lay”), Saterland Frisian lääse (“to lie; to lay”), West Frisian lizze (“to lie”), Alemannic German ligge (“to lie”), Central Franconian lijje (“to lie”), Dutch and Dutch Low Saxon liggen (“to lie”), German liegen (“to lie”), German Low German ligge, liggen (“to lie”), Luxembourgish leien (“to lie”), Yiddish ליגן (lign, “to lie”), Danish and Norwegian Bokmål ligge (“to lie”), Faroese and Icelandic liggja (“to lie”), Norwegian Nynorsk ligge, liggja, liggje (“to lie”), Swedish ligga (“to lie”), Gothic 𐌻𐌹𐌲𐌰𐌽 (ligan, “to lie, to rest”); and with Irish laigh, luigh (“to lie”), Manx lhie (“lie; lay”), Scottish Gaelic laigh (“lie; lay”), Faliscan 𐌋𐌄𐌂𐌄𐌕 (lecet, “he lies down”), Latin lectus (“bed”), South Picene 𐌅𐌄𐌉𐌀𐌕 (veiat, “to lie”), Ancient Greek λέχομαι (lékhomai, “to lie down”), Albanian lag (“band, encampment, troop”), Belarusian ляжа́ць (ljažácʹ, “to lie”), Bulgarian лежа́ (ležá, “to lie”), Czech ležet (“to lie”), Macedonian лежи (leži, “to lie”), Polish leżeć (“to lie”), Russian лежа́ть (ležátʹ, “to lie”), Serbo-Croatian лѐжати, lèžati (“to lie”), Slovene ležáti (“to lie”), Ukrainian лежа́ти (ležáty, “to lie”), Tocharian B lyäk- (“to lie”). As a noun for position, the noun has the same etymology above as the verb.

This word in other languages

yacer(Español)gésir(Français)liegen(Deutsch)jazer(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "lie"?
"lie" is spelled L-I-E. The IPA pronunciation is /laɪ̯/.
What does "lie" mean?
As a verb, "lie" means: To rest in a horizontal position on a surface.
What words are commonly confused with "lie"?
"lie" is commonly confused with "Lt", "lo", "LP". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "lie"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "lie" is /laɪ̯/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "lie"?
From Middle English lien, liggen, from Old English liċġan, from Proto-West Germanic *liggjan, from Proto-Germanic *ligjaną, from Proto-Indo-European *legʰ-. Cognates Cognate with Yola lee, lidge (“to lie”), leigh, leiough (“to idle”), North Frisia... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "lie", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

sad#1,5361st#1,549bus#1,554fat#1,482

What to do next

You've looked up "lie". Here's where to go from here.

  • "lie" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "Lt". View pair
  • Usage frequency rank #1,530 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "L" letter cohort. L–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list