Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

lay a foundation

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.41 in modern English

Syllables: lay a -foun-da-tion
IPA

21

Scrabble Score

14

Letters

4

Syllables

10

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see lay, foundation.

verb

To elicit information from a witness to show that the witness has knowledge of a matter before the witness testifies to the matter itself.

verb

To make a start.

Example Sentences

"In order to lay a foundation for the witness to describe the murder, the prosecutor first had to show that the witness was present when the murder occurred."
"You should lay a foundation, even if you can't finish the project."

Etymology

Figurative senses from the idea of laying a foundation as the first step in constructing a building.

Inflected Forms

lays a foundation (present, singular) laying a foundation (participle, present) laid a foundation (participle, past) laid a foundation (past)

Questions

What does lay a foundation mean?: Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see lay, foundation.
Where does lay a foundation come from?: Figurative senses from the idea of laying a foundation as the first step in constructing a building.

How to pronounce lay a foundation

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