After laying his cup on the table and lying on the couch, Larry looked to see if the cup lay squarely on the coaster or if its lie was part way on and part way off, and that’s no lie. If it had lain at an angle, the lean might have led to spilled coffee laid squarely in his lap. Relieved, he laid down for a long nap.
Is this paragraph grammatically correct? No, it’s not. Can you identify any incorrect usage of lie, meaning “to be at rest” or lay, meaning “to put or place”? If many writers aren’t sure, you can be sure readers won’t go to the dictionary to see if we’ve used proper grammar.
Even when we write correctly, readers may think we’ve done it wrong. In cases where its correct use might be questioned, the safest approach is to find a better, less confusing word.
