lay one's account

verb

To reckon with (also on or for) some future act or event; to expect, to plan (for).

First used 17th c.
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Meanings

verblay one's account (third-person singular simple present lays one's account, present participle laying one's account, simple past and past participle laid one's account)

present singular third person lays one's account · participle present laying one's account · participle past laid one's account · past laid one's account

  1. UKregionalTo reckon with (also on or for) some future act or event; to expect, to plan (for).First known use 17th c.

    The jurors must have laid their account with appearing before the Star-chamber.

    1827, Henry Hallam, The Constitutional History of England
    1 more example

    But as the place of my abode was now discovered, I laid my account with having a visit from his employer: I therefore planted spies upon the road […].

    1751, [Tobias] Smollett, The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle […], volume (please specify |volume=I to IV), London: Harrison and Co., […], →OCLC
Cite this entry
APA

lay one's account. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lay%20one's%20account

MLA

“lay one's account.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lay%20one's%20account. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “lay one's account,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lay%20one's%20account.

Source: lay one's account on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.