lies

The word “lies” means third-person singular present tense of "lie" — says something untrue on purpose. In plain terms, most often the verb/noun forms tied to "lie" (an untruth); rarely used as slang for "great.".

“Lies” is pronounced lyz (/laɪz/ in IPA).

Here is “lies” used in a sentence: “He lies about his age whenever it suits him.”

Depending on how it is used, “lies” can be a verb, a noun and an adjective.

“Lies” is a very common word in modern English.

“Lies” has 3 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: third-person singular present tense of "lie" — says something untrue on purpose.

'Lies' comes from the verb 'lie', which takes no object — a person lies down, or lies by telling an untruth. 'Lays' comes from 'lay', which needs an object — you lay something down. If you can replace it with 'places', use 'lays'; if nothing is being placed, use 'lies'.

No. 'Lies' has two unrelated senses. One means saying something false on purpose — 'he lies to avoid trouble'. The other means to recline or be positioned — 'she lies on the sofa', or 'the village lies to the north'. Context makes clear which meaning is intended.

The opposite is telling the truth — being honest or truthful. Where someone who lies deliberately says something false, someone who tells the truth reports things as they really are. Related expressions include 'is honest', 'comes clean', and 'levels with you'.