lying? laying?

[oregonianabroad]

I am always stumped by these pesky verbs. Anyone know any tricks to remember?

'laying' is a transitive verb, ie. it takes an object: "I laid the book on the table"; "he laid the baby back in its cot". It also involves movement rather than a state.

'Lying' is intransitive and describes a state rather than a movement: 'the baby is lying down in his cot'; 'the snake was lying in the grass' 'your clothes are lying on the bathroom floor again'.

OK< what about the past tense. lied? laid? lay?

A hen lays an egg, you lie on a bed. The bed was lain on by you. The egg was laid by the hen.

Last night I lay down on the sofa.
Last night I laid the quilt over the bed.

Today I lie on the sofa.
Today I lay the quilt down on the bed.

And I lied about how long I had been lying down on the sofa.

I often find myself laying the table, laying the quilt on the bed, and lying down on the sofa.

The hen lays an egg. It has laid several eggs this week.

Easy really.