Waylay
[weɪ'leɪ] or [we'le]
Definition
(v. t.) To lie in wait for; to meet or encounter in the way; especially, to watch for the passing of, with a view to seize, rob, or slay; to beset in ambush.
Edited by Colin
Synonyms and Synonymous
v. a. Lie in wait for (with evil intent), lie in ambush for.
Typist: Vern
Examples
- It had been the calling of his life to slink and skulk and dog and waylay, and he knew his calling well. Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- What accidents and subtle suggestions may not waylay them and cheat them? H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- She knows that the King is capable of having her waylaid and searched. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
- Could they have been waylaid and robbed? Charles Dickens. The Pickwick Papers.
- The cross marks the spot where a celebrated troubadour was waylaid and murdered in the fourteenth century. Mark Twain. The Innocents Abroad.
- Twice she has been waylaid. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
- My beloved reader has no doubt in the course of his experience been waylaid by many such a luckless companion. William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
- He waylays the smaller boys to punch their unprotected heads, and calls challenges after me in the open streets. Charles Dickens. David Copperfield.
Edited by Gillian