Question 1 · Quick check
underlie
CEFRC1
/ˌʌn.dəˈlaɪ/
verb
Türkçe translations
Translating…
In plain English
- 01
verb
To be the basic cause or support of something.
- 02
verb
Extra detailTo lie under or beneath.
Examples
What reasoning could underlie their latest decision?
Who knows what disagreements underlie this agreement?
At a glance
Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale
- Senses
- 5
- Parts of speech
- 1
- Citations
- 3
- Synonyms
- 1
Also pronounced
- /ˌan.dəˈlɑɪ/
Deep Dive
verb
Extra meaningsTo serve as a basis of; form the foundation of.
To lie in a position directly beneath something.
To underlay.
More examples
In contextA stratum of clay underlies the surface gravel.
a doctrine underlying a theory
[…] she was carved into the bole of a red cedar tree. Sun and storm had bleached the wood, moss here and there softened the crudeness of the modelling; sincerity underlay every stroke.
Related
Quick test
Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.
Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.
Nearby
Origin
verb
From Middle English underlien, underliggen, from Old English underliċġan (“to underlie, to be subject to, give way to”), equivalent to under- + lie. Cognate with Dutch onderliggen (“to lie below, lie on the bottom of”), German unterliegen (“to lie under, be subject to, succumb”).