underlie

Meaning

  1. (intransitive) To lie in a position directly beneath something.
  2. (transitive) To lie under or beneath.
  3. (transitive) To serve as a basis of; form the foundation of.
  4. (transitive) To be subject to; be liable to answer, as a charge or challenge.
  5. To underlay.

Pronounced as (IPA)
/ˌʌn.dəˈlaɪ/
Etymology

In summary

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”).

Notes

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