underlay

Meanings

1. simple past of underlie

1. To lay (something) underneath something else; to put under.
2. To provide a support for something; to raise or support by something laid under.
3. To put a tap on (a shoe).
4. To incline from the vertical.

1. A layer (of earth, etc.) that lies under another; substratum.
2. A soft floor covering that lies under a carpet.
3. Anything that is underlaid.
4. A piece of paper pasted under woodcuts, stereotype plates, etc. in a form, to bring them up to the necessary level for printing.
5. Lyrics; or more specifically, the way in which lyrics are assigned to musical notes.

Etymology

From Middle English underleyen, from Old English underleċġan (“to underlay, prop, support”), equivalent to under- + lay. Cognate with Dutch onderleggen (“to lay or put under”), German unterlegen (“to underlay”), Swedish underlägga (“to underlay”).