Å legge = To lay, place (Uke 47)

The Verb of the Week is å legge, to lay, place, or put.

So what is the difference between "lay" and "lie"?

"To lay" is the infinitive of the transitive verb meaning to make someone or something else prone on a surface. It is transitive because the subject of the sentence is taking action on someone else or something else, i.e. the direct object of the sentence. A direct object is therefore mandatory: "I lay (put) the book on the table" .

"To lie" is the infinitive of the intransitive verb meaning to make oneself prone (to recline) on a surface. The subject of the sentence (the doer, in this case "I") does nothing to anything or anyone else and does not, therefore, require a direct object: "I lie".

It may be helpful to remember that the word "transitive" includes trans- meaning "across" (trans-continental, transport, etc.), which "reaches across" or "transfers the action" from the actor to the acted-upon. "Intransitive" therefore has no action taken.

For "to lie" meaning to tell an untruth, use å lyve.

Here are the conjugations of this irregular verb --

jeg legger = I lay/put (present tense)
jeg har lagt = I have laid/put (present perfect tense)
jeg la = I laid/put (past tense)
jeg hadde lagt = I had laid/put (past perfect tense)
jeg vil legge = I will lay/put (future)
jeg vil ha lagt = I will have laid/put (future perfect)
jeg ville legge = I would lay/put (present conditional)
jeg ville ha lagt = I would have laid/put (perfect conditional)

And here are some examples of its use --

Høna legger egg.
The hen lays eggs.

Hun la ut sine kort og sa «Gin!»
She laid down her cards and said "Gin!"

Etter frokost, la far sin avis og gjorde en kunngjørelse.
After breakfast, father put down his paper and made an announcement.

Nå som våren kommer, må vi legge bort våre ski.
Now that summer is coming, we must put away our skis.