Poll: He told the dog to lay down.

He told the dog to lay down.

This sentence is fine in standard English.
This sentence is fine in regional English.
This sentence is incorrect.

Votes: 306
Comments: 3
Added: December 2006

Comments:

Jenny - 27th January 2008 13:35
'lie' is present tense 'lay' is past tense so in this context 'lay' is incorrect
 
Rob - 14th September 2010 04:27
I'm gonna go "lay" down, that sounds present tense to me, I'm gonna go "lie" down does also
 
Victoria Warren - 30th November 2010 20:28
lay is a transitive verb meaning put or place eg Lay the book on the desk.
lay, laid, laid

lie is intransitive meaning recline or situate eg. I'm going to lie down.
lie, lay, lain
 
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