Today, as promised last time around, we discuss uses of "set" and "lay" as nouns. Seldom do we receive queries about writing these forms unless they appear in combination with other parts of speech. Wary writers are not sure whether to retain the separation of parts, hyphenate, or turn the expression into singles.
When we were in high school, our English teachers told us the longest word in our language was "disestablishmentarianism." At the time, it did not occur to me that the word might have evolved by adding a prefix and a glut of suffixes to "establish." Fancy that!
Recently, from an article briefing the history of the church, I learned that "disestablish" was established in the Latin language before the fifth century, and was known to Pope Leo the Great. More recently still, Paul Harvey averred that "John Paul knows how to Pope." My only excuse for this wide-of-the-mark digression is that Paul Harvey made a verb of a noun. A Very Proper Noun at that!
Today, however, our attention is focused upon the opposite device -- turning verbs into nouns. To revert to our theme, we begin with "set." If our hair stylist sets our hair, for example, "set" is a verb no matter how wild or tame the desired affect. But the act of getting it set is a "hair set" -- a double noun unless we construe "hair" as an adjective. Whatever the set, "hair set" is written as two words. In dictionaries if nowhere else.
Groups of things of the same kind are also called "sets," as in a set of books or dishes, the high school set, or a travel set. The manner in which something is positioned is also described as a "set." American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition, lists "the set of a man's chin" as an example. The set of a chin that changes course with the political wind may evoke comments from our readers, but let us be charitable for once.
"Set" is also used as a noun to portray scenery constructed for a theatrical performance: the stage set for a school play, or the entire enclosure in which a movie version of a play or any other production is filmed. No photo of the set prepared across the ocean for Dave Letterman has reached us, but we are dead set against crossing the street to mail a request for a ticket. (Not even our devotees can expect us to be charitable twice within a hundred words!)
Double nouns disturb the conscientious writer because some have more than one meaning. A "set back" denoting a reversal of fortune is one word. In football, a player who lines behind a quarterback is written as a "set back" -- two words.
A "setup" is one word when it refers to something easily set up, such as ice and soda water. (Our thanks to American Heritage again.) A "setup" may also be a hoax or a fake intended to deceive. Do not permit anyone to substitute a fake ingredient in your drink. The combination could be fatal.
For further examples, we suggest a standard dictionary. Limited space reminds us that a run-down on "lay" as a noun is in order.
More combinations than singles exist for the noun "lay." A "layout," one word, may be used for laying out material for printing, publishing, or any kind of exhibit, from art to business. A "layover," also one word, is a short stop or break in a journey.
A "lay opinion," referring to the laity -- clerical, educational, or whatever -- is two words. On the contrary, a "layman" or "laywoman" -- "laypersons" who are not officials in the organizations they serve -- is one word.
In England, a "layabout," one word, is a lazy bum. Ask not why the British fail to designate them as "lie-abouts." "Lie" is two verbs, and the correct usage could perpetrate quips such as "What are those `lie-abouts' lying about?" People get shot for less.
"Lay Day," two words, is one of a number of days in port allowed the lesser of a ship without charge. Then there is the "lay of the land" -- an idiom denoting the nature or disposition of something.
A lay, gentle readers, is also a ballad. Eons ago, in high school English, we studied Sir Walter Scott's "Lay of the Last Minstrel." Some decades later, we -- a former teacher of mine and I -- visited the famous author's home in Abbotsford, Scotland.
"The Lay of the Last Minstrel" was published in 1805. My travelmate and I could not return for the autograph party. Our quantum lacked the power to leap back that far in time.
~Aileen Lorberg is a language columnist for the Southeast Missourian.
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