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Underlie

//ˌʌn.dɚˈlaɪ// verb

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To lie in a position directly beneath something. intransitive
  2. 2
    be or form the base for wordnet
  3. 3
    To lie under or beneath. transitive

    "A stratum of clay underlies the surface gravel."

  4. 4
    lie underneath wordnet
  5. 5
    To serve as a basis of; form the foundation of. transitive

    "a doctrine underlying a theory"

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  1. 6
    To be subject to; be liable to answer, as a charge or challenge. transitive

    "The knight of Ivanhoe […] underlies the challenge of Brian der Bois Guilbert."

  2. 7
    To underlay.

Etymology

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”).

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