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layer

noun

Simple meaning

A single thin sheet or coating covering a surface

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

layer

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈleɪɚ

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. Single thickness of usually some homogeneous substance

  2. A single thickness of some material covering a surface.

  3. A relatively thin sheetlike expanse or region lying over or under another

  4. An item of clothing worn under or over another.

  5. One of the items in a hierarchy.

  6. A person who lays anything, such as tiles or a wager.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
A1 · Beginner (estimated)
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
General English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Single thickness of usually some homogeneous substance

Used this way, layer is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
Matter-of-fact
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Single

surface layersingle layer

Relatively / item

thin layer

Other combinations

boundary layerozone layerphysical layerouter layerdouble layer

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • layer cakenounCompound term

    Cake having layers held together by a sweet filling and usually covered with frosting.

  • boundary layernounCompound term

    The layer of slower flow of a fluid past a surface.

  • germ layernounCompound term

    Any of the 3 layers of cells differentiated in embryos following gastrulation.

  • conjunctival layer of bulbnounCompound term

    The part of the conjunctiva covering the anterior face of the sclera and the surface epithelium of the cornea.

  • e layernounCompound term

    A region of the ionosphere (from 50 to 90 miles up) that reflects radio waves of medium length.

  • f layernounCompound term

    The highest region of the ionosphere (from 90 to 600 miles up) which contains the highest concentration of free electrons and is most useful for long-range radio transmission.

Related Words

Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.