layup

1 of 2

noun

lay·​up ˈlā-ˌəp How to pronounce layup (audio)
1
: the action of laying up or the condition of being laid up
2
: a shot in basketball made from near the basket usually by playing the ball off the backboard

lay up

2 of 2

verb

laid up; laying up; lays up

transitive verb

1
: to store up : lay by
2
: to disable or confine with illness or injury
a knee injury laid him up for a week
3
: to take out of active service

Examples of layup in a Sentence

Verb an eating disorder that would impel her to lay up candy bars in her closet for all-night food binges
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Except Padilla – a lithe 5-foot-9 guard who wasn’t known for her defense before arriving at USC from Penn – chased down and swatted Jones’ layup away, setting the stage for overtime. Luca Evans, Orange County Register, 9 Mar. 2024 Grossmont freshman Aakash Price tied the game with 1:54 to play on a driving layup, setting the stage for Fleming’s heroics. Don Norcross, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Mar. 2024 His sweeping layup to open the second half started a 10-3 run to enable West to build a 36-25 lead. Erick Taylor, arkansasonline.com, 29 Feb. 2024 On Westchester’s ensuing possession, Waugh was fouled but missed both free throws, and DeeDee Berry passed to Lili Martinez for a layup to put Birmingham up 51-48 with 31 seconds remaining. Steve Galluzzo, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2024 On their next trip up the court, on the other end of an East layup, Flanigan missed another 3. Calum McAndrew, Kansas City Star, 3 Mar. 2024 Jones took over ball handling duties for SRV and scored two huge buckets, including an and-1 layup that pushed the SRV lead to eight in the second quarter. Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 1 Mar. 2024 The Spartans didn’t play at Viejas Arena last season, but Anderson rose to the occasion Tuesday with several clutch baskets down the stretch that kept them in the game — a flying tip-in between two Aztecs defenders, a layup that pulled them within four points with 39 seconds left. Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Feb. 2024 The Mavs refused to go away, however, with a Kyrie Irving layup trimming the lead to one before Dallas capitalized on an errant Evan Mobley pass to set up a PJ Washington bucket in the paint to go up 119-118 with 2.8 seconds left. Sam Joseph, CNN, 28 Feb. 2024
Verb
Bees and ants reproduce quickly–a queen can lay up to thousands of eggs in a day. Popular Science, 29 Feb. 2024 Female bedbugs can deposit one to five eggs a day and may lay up to 200 to 500 eggs in their lifetime. Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2024 Those two moments laid up against each other very nicely. Hunter Ingram, Variety, 13 Oct. 2023 Photographs show soldiers reading them while getting a haircut, laid up in traction and facing various challenging conditions. Jennifer Schuessler, New York Times, 6 Oct. 2023 Females can lay up to seven eggs a day, meaning infestations can spread quickly. Leila Sackur, NBC News, 30 Sep. 2023 His injury forced eventual All-Star starter Jonah Heim into a true everyday starting role at catcher, and the Rangers’ offense did more than just stay afloat while the former Silver Slugger was laid up. Shawn McFarland, Dallas News, 13 Sep. 2023 With her out on leave and partner Pete laid up with COVID-19, the detective agency Finder Keepers is closed when a desperate mom named Penny Dahl leaves a voicemail hoping that someone can find her daughter Bonnie, an assistant librarian at Bell College of Arts and Sciences. Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 6 Sep. 2023 That set the stage for Fox, who chose to lay up on the 18th not trusting his lie in moderate rough with water in front of the green. Associated Press, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Sep. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'layup.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1845, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of layup was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near layup

Cite this Entry

“Layup.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/layup. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

layup

1 of 2 noun
lay·​up ˈlā-ˌəp How to pronounce layup (audio)
: a basketball shot made from near the basket usually by bouncing the ball off the backboard

lay up

2 of 2 verb
1
: to store up
2
: to disable or confine with illness or injury
a knee injury laid her up for a week
3
: to take out of active service

More from Merriam-Webster on layup

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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