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Lay Vs Lie Practice (A2-B1) - English Grammar Quiz

⏱ Time: 07:30 📝 Questions: 15 📊 Level: A2, B1 📚 Type: Grammar ⭐ XP: up to +15 (on pass)

Challenge yourself: 15 Lay Vs Lie questions, 7 minutes, Level A2-B1. Can you get a perfect score? The questions start straightforward and build to tricky edge cases. Read every explanation to pick up tips that textbooks often skip.

⏱ You have 07:30 to answer 15 questions. The timer only starts when you click Begin.

Q1  15
Q1 15

Question 1: Please ___ the blanket on the bed before the guests arrive.

Question 1 options
'Lay' is correct because it is a transitive verb that requires a direct object (the blanket). 'Lie' is intransitive and cannot take a direct object. 'Laid' is past tense, and 'lain' is a past participle — neither fits a present-tense instruction.
Q2 15

Question 2: After the long hike, Maria wanted to ___ down and rest.

Question 2 options
'Lie' is correct because it is an intransitive verb meaning to recline, and no direct object follows. 'Lay' requires a direct object. 'Laid' is the past tense of 'lay', and 'lain' is the past participle of 'lie' — neither fits a present-tense context here.
Q3 15

Question 3: 'Lay' is a transitive verb, which means it always needs a direct object to complete its meaning.

Question 3 options
True. 'Lay' always requires a direct object — the thing being placed or put down. For example, 'Lay the book on the table' — 'the book' is the direct object. Without an object, 'lay' is grammatically incomplete.
Q4 15

Question 4: Which situation correctly uses the verb 'lie'?

Question 4 options
'Lie' is an intransitive verb used when a person or animal reclines or rests without placing an object. It does not take a direct object. 'Lay' is used when someone places something down, which requires a direct object.
Q5 15

Question 5: Arrange the words to make a correct sentence:

Question 5 options
  • The nurse
  • on the table
  • the bandage
  • lays

Drag items or use arrows to arrange them in the correct order.

The correct sentence is 'The nurse lays the bandage on the table.' 'Lays' is the present tense of 'lay' used with a third-person singular subject, and 'the bandage' is the required direct object.
Q6 15

Question 6: Which sentence is grammatically correct?

Question 6 options
'She laid the newspapers on the chair' is correct because 'laid' is the past tense of 'lay', a transitive verb, and 'the newspapers' is the direct object. The other sentences incorrectly use 'lain' or 'lay' (present tense of lie) in a past transitive context, or use 'lay' without needed support.
Q7 15

Question 7: Tom: 'Where is the cat?' Anna: 'She's been ___ on the sofa all morning.' Which word completes the sentence correctly?

Question 7 options
'Lying' is correct because it is the present participle of 'lie' (to recline), used in the present perfect continuous 'has been lying'. The cat is resting with no object — an intransitive action. 'Laying' would require a direct object. 'Laid' and 'lain' do not fit the continuous structure here.
Q8 15

Question 8: Which sentence correctly uses 'lay' instead of 'lie'?

Question 8 options
'He carefully laid the sleeping child on the bed' is correct because 'laid' is the past tense of 'lay' and 'the sleeping child' is the direct object being placed. The other options use 'lay' or 'lie' in contexts where no direct object is present, which calls for 'lie/lay (past of lie)'.
Q9 15

Question 9: Put the words in the correct order:

Question 9 options
  • have lain
  • all morning
  • in bed
  • I

Drag items or use arrows to arrange them in the correct order.

The correct sentence is 'I have lain in bed all morning.' 'Have lain' is the present perfect of 'lie' (to recline), and 'in bed all morning' follows as the adverbial phrase. No direct object is used because 'lie' is intransitive.
Q10 15

Question 10: Yesterday, I was very tired, so I ___ on the sofa for two hours.

Question 10 options
'Lay' is correct because it is the past tense of 'lie' (to recline). No direct object follows, confirming 'lie' is the correct base verb. 'Laid' is the past tense of 'lay' (transitive) and requires an object. 'Lain' is a past participle and cannot stand alone without an auxiliary. 'Lie' is present tense.
Q11 15

Question 11: A student writes: 'The past tense of lie (to recline) is laid.' Which statement about this is true?

Question 11 options
The student is wrong. The past tense of 'lie' (to recline) is 'lay', not 'laid'. 'Laid' is the past tense of 'lay' (to place something). This mix-up is one of the most common errors with these two verbs.
Q12 15

Question 12: Original: 'She placed the gift on the table.' Rewrite using a form of 'lay': 'She ___ the gift on the table.'

Question 12 options
'Laid' is correct because it is the simple past tense of the transitive verb 'lay', matching the past tense of 'placed'. 'Lay' is present tense. 'Lain' is the past participle of 'lie' and needs an auxiliary. 'Lays' is third-person present tense.
Q13 15

Question 13: Match each sentence to the correct grammar label.

Question 13 options
Every day, she lays her keys on the shelf.
He laid the tools on the workbench before starting.
The children lie on the grass and look at the stars.
After dinner, he lay on the couch and fell asleep.
Past tense of 'lay' (transitive — placing an object)
Present tense of 'lay' (transitive — placing an object)
Present tense of 'lie' (intransitive — reclining, no object)
Past tense of 'lie' (intransitive — reclining in the past)

Select an item on the left, then tap its match on the right.

'Lay' (present) takes a direct object. 'Laid' is past tense of 'lay'. 'Lie' (present) is intransitive with no object. 'Lay' as past tense of 'lie' describes reclining in the past.
Q14 15

Question 14: The word 'lay' can function as both the present tense of the transitive verb 'lay' AND the past tense of the intransitive verb 'lie'.

Question 14 options
True. 'Lay' has two roles: it is the present tense of 'lay' (e.g., 'Lay the book down') and also the past tense of 'lie' (e.g., 'Yesterday, she lay on the sofa'). This overlap is the main source of confusion between these two verbs.
Q15 15

Question 15: Which sentence best expresses that someone rested in the past without placing any object?

Question 15 options
'She lay quietly on the beach all afternoon' is correct because 'lay' is the past tense of 'lie' (intransitive — to recline) and no direct object is used. 'Laid' requires a direct object (past of transitive 'lay'). The other options use incorrect forms for this meaning.