1 B2 idiomatic neutral
To be forced to stay in bed or rest due to illness or injury.
"She was laid up for two weeks after breaking her ankle."
separable
lay up
B2 neutral separable transitive/intransitive
To be forced to stay in bed due to illness or injury, or to store a vehicle or vessel when not in use.
In plain English
Stay in bed because you're sick or hurt, or put a car or boat somewhere safe when you're not using it.
What does "lay up" mean?
3 meanings, ordered from most common to least. Color-coded by CEFR level.
2 B2 neutral
To put a ship, boat, or vehicle into storage or out of service for a period of time.
"They laid up the fishing boat for the winter when conditions became too dangerous."
separable
3 C1 formal
To accumulate or store something for future use.
"He had laid up enough savings to retire comfortably at sixty."
“
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt.
— The Bible, Matthew 6:19 (King James Version)
separable
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To lay (place) something up (away) for storage or rest.
Actually means
Stay in bed because you're sick or hurt, or put a car or boat somewhere safe when you're not using it.
Usage tip
The 'confined by illness' sense is very common and is usually used in the passive ('be laid up'). The 'store a vessel' sense is used in nautical and transport contexts. Both senses are neutral in register.
Words that pair with "lay up"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
bed illness injury flu boat winter
How to conjugate "lay up"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
lay up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
lays up
he/she/it
Past simple
laid up
yesterday
Past participle
laid up
have + pp
-ing form
laying up
continuous
Hear "lay up" in the wild
Listen to native speakers using "lay up" in real YouTube videos — click a clip to watch it on Looplines.
Keep exploring
Jump to every phrasal verb built on the same verb, particle, or level.