# Acuéstese (para poder revisarlo)



## Richard Dick

¿"Acuéstese," se traduce como Lay o lay down?

Oración:
Acuéstese para poder revisarlo/checarlo.

Mi duda es si puedo usar el verbo "lay" without down.

Eg: lay, so I can examine you


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## Agró

*Lie*, no _lay_ (que significa _poner_).


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## Ferrol

Y se debe añadir "down"


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## Reina de la Aldea

_Lay _and _lie _are both present tense verb forms, but _lay_ is also the past tense of _lie_.  
For clarity, see Merriam-Webster: How to use 'Lay' and 'Lie'
After all is said and done, and the person is relating what happened, that's where _lay_ comes in:  _I lay down.... _


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## Magazine

Richard Dick said:


> Mi duda es si puedo usar el verbo "lay" without down.


Lie down, please. 

Y no, no se puede usar sin "down" en este contexto.


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## elroy

Agró said:


> *Lie*, no _lay_ (que significa _poner_).





Magazine said:


> Lie down, please.


 In everyday US English, “lay down” is extremely common.


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## Magazine

elroy said:


> In everyday US English, “lay down” is extremely common.


I know, my American friend says this all the time, in BrE I am familiar with "lie down".


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## Richard Dick

elroy said:


> In everyday US English, “lay down” is extremely common.





*acostar⇒* _vtr_(tumbar) (_in horizontal position_)lay down⇒, lay⇒ _vtr_  put in bed, put to bed _v expr_ Acuéstalo de lado, por si vomita. Lay him (_or: _lay him down) on his side, in case he vomits.


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## elroy

No, I meant for “acostarse,” not for “acostar.”


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## Richard Dick

elroy said:


> No, I meant for “acostarse,” not for “acostar.”


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## elroy

For example:  If you’re tired, lay down for a bit.

I would never say “lie.”


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## Richard Dick

elroy said:


> For example:  If you’re tired, lay down for a bit.
> 
> I would never say “lie.”


OK. Entendido.


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## Magazine

elroy said:


> For example:  If you’re tired, lay down for a bit.
> 
> I would never say “lie.”


In BrE it's even used as a noun, never heard that one, but there you are: 

_I usually have a lie-down after lunch. _


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## Bevj

As far as BrE goes, *lay down* is a transitive verb.
_Acostarse_ is always *lie down.*


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## Reina de la Aldea

elroy said:


> For example:  If you’re tired, lay down for a bit.
> 
> I would never say “lie.”


Why, if you know it's correct??


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## Magazine

Reina de la Aldea said:


> Why, if you know it's correct??


I actually agree with elroy on this one. I would never say many things which are quite usual in other Spanish speaking countries. On the one hand because what they say would not even be understood over here even though technically it's correct or it is simply not said this way.


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## Richard Dick

Reina de la Aldea said:


> Why, if you know it's correct??


Creo se refiere a "lie" without "down".


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## Bevj

Para volver a la pregunta original,  la traducción correcta de 'acuéstese' es sin duda 'lie down'.


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## Reina de la Aldea

Magazine said:


> I actually agree with elroy on this one. I would never say many things which are quite usual in other Spanish speaking countries. On the one hand because what they say would not even be understood over here even though technically it's correct or it is simply not said this way.


In this case, it's not a matter of it being technically correct (it is) yet not said, nor is it a matter of being understood (the meaning is perfectly clear).  Using _lay _as a present-tense, intransitive verb is incorrect and sounds wrong to me.  I guess @elroy and I are at opposite ends of the spectrum on this.


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## Richard Dick

elroy said:


> In everyday US English, “lay down” is extremely common.


Me gusta también "Lay down," aunque no sea técnicamente correcto o formal.
Me acuerdo de la canción de Bruno Mars: lazy song. Y dice, "Today I don't feel like doing anything,
I just wanna LAY IN my bed."


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## elroy

Reina de la Aldea said:


> Why, if you know it's correct??


 I speak English naturally and intuitively, without metalinguistically considering my choices.

This is a classic example of prescriptive and descriptive approaches to language.

Prescriptively, "lie" is correct here and "lay" is not.
Descriptively, "lay" is correct because it is used naturally and intuitively by native speakers.


Richard Dick said:


> Creo se refiere a "lie" without "down".


 No, I was referring to the use of "lay" instead of "lie."  This is what RdlA is objecting to.


Bevj said:


> la traducción correcta de 'acuéstese' es sin duda 'lie down'.


 In British English, maybe.
In American English, it depends on who you ask and what their perspective is. 


Reina de la Aldea said:


> Using _lay _as a present-tense, intransitive verb is incorrect and sounds wrong to me.


 If "lay" sounds (and/or feels) wrong to you, then by all means use "lie"!  I'm not saying there's anything wrong with using "lie."  I'm saying that _I _(and many others) would naturally and intuitively use "lay" and that there's nothing wrong with that from a descriptive point of view -- so it is not, as you claim, categorically "incorrect."


Richard Dick said:


> Me gusta también "Lay down," aunque no sea técnicamente correcto o formal.


 ...aunque no sea correcto _desde una perspectiva prescriptivista_.  Nada de "técnicamente" correcto o no.


Richard Dick said:


> "Today I don't feel like doing anything,
> I just wanna LAY IN my bed.


 "lay" without "down" sounds okay in that case because it's followed by "in my bed."
"I just wanna lay" sounds horribly unidiomatic.
"I just wanna lay down"


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## OtroLencho

elroy said:


> Descriptively, "lay" is correct because it is used naturally and intuitively by native speakers.


By _some_ native speakers.  Probably by few language professionals, and I would *never* teach that to an ESL student as the primary variant.

 I understand your point about prescriptive/descriptive, but am unsure about how widespread something needs to be in order to cross the line into general acceptability.


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## elroy

In my experience, it's very widespread. 





OtroLencho said:


> Probably by few language professionals


 I am a language professional, and I use "lay."


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## LVRBC

I am a medical professional and I say, "Lie down, please."


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## michelmontescuba

Lay down - (Intransitive *nonstandard, proscribed*) To lie down; to place oneself in a reclined or horizontal position, on a bed or similar, for the purpose of resting._I feel a bit ill, so I'm going to go *lay down* for a while._

fuente: wiktionary.org


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## Richard Dick

En pocas palabras, "Lay down" sounds pretty good to me. Period.

En gramática: lie down, y en informal, Lay down.

Esa era mi principal duda, y me ayudó mucho @elroy


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## elroy

Richard Dick said:


> En gramática: lie down


 This depends on what you mean by "gramática."  If you're following _prescriptive grammar_, then yes, you should use "lie down."  According to _descriptive grammar_, it depends on the setting, register, etc; it's not black and white. 





michelmontescuba said:


> *nonstandard, proscribed*


 Yes, this is basically the same thing as "prescriptively incorrect."


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## Richard Dick

Pues me quedo con el lado "b" del cassette= Lay down.
Period.


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## OtroLencho

elroy said:


> ...it depends on the setting, register, etc; it's not black and white.


I agree with that.

I consider "lay down" to be a lower register which if I heard a doctor tell me that in the consulting room I might give him a glance askance and wonder how he got a medical degree.


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## sound shift

OtroLencho said:


> I consider "lay down" to be a lower register which if I heard a doctor tell me that in the consulting room I might give him a glance askance and wonder how he got a medical degree.


An osteopath told me recently to "lay down." I thought, "Alternative medicine: alternative English; I won't ask for a refund."


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## Magazine

sound shift said:


> An osteopath told me recently to "lay down." I thought, "Alternative medicine: alternative English; I won't ask for a refund."


 
I asume that was in England. See , modern times.


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