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Layer vs Overlay - What's the difference?

layer | overlay | Related terms |

As nouns the difference between layer and overlay

is that layer is a single thickness of some material covering a surface while overlay is a piece of paper pasted upon the tympan sheet to improve the impression by making it stronger at a particular place.

As verbs the difference between layer and overlay

is that layer is to cut or divide (something) into layers while overlay is to lay, or spread, something over or across; to cover.

layer

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • A single thickness of some material covering a surface.
    • Wrap the loaf in two layers of aluminum foil before putting it in the oven.
    After the first coat of paint dried, he applied another layer .
  • # An item of clothing worn under or over another.
  • It's cold now but it will warm up this afternoon. Make sure you wear layers .
  • A (usually) horizontal deposit; a stratum.
    • I find seven-layer cake a bit too rich.
  • A person who lays things, such as tiles.
  • A mature female bird, insect, etc. that is able to lay eggs.
    • When dealing with an infestation of headlice, the first step is to eliminate the layers .
  • A hen kept to lay eggs.
  • A shoot of a plant, laid underground for growth.

    • Synonyms

    * (stratum) stratum

    Derived terms

    * boundary layer * ozone layer

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • (ambitransitive) to cut or divide (something) into layers
  • (ambitransitive) to arrange (something) in layers.
    • Layer the ribbons on top of one another to make an attractive pattern.

    External links

    * *

    Anagrams

    * *

    overlay

    English

    Verb

  • To lay, or spread, something over or across; to cover.
  • * Spenser
    • as when a cloud his beams doth overlay
  • * Milton
    • framed of cedar overlaid with gold
  • To overwhelm; to press excessively upon.
  • * Sir Walter Raleigh
    • when any country is overlaid by the multitude which live upon it
  • * Bible, 1 Kings iii. 19
    • This woman's child died in the night, because she overlaid it.
  • * Dryden
    • a heap of ashes that o'erlays your fire
  • *1993 , (Pat Barker), The Eye in the Door'', Penguin 2014 (''The Regeneration Trilogy ), p. 371:
  • *:Prostitutes, thieves, girls who ‘overlaid ’ their babies, abortionists who stuck their knitting needles into something vital – did they really need to be here?
  • (printing) To put an on.

    • Noun

    (en noun)
  • (printing) A piece of paper pasted upon the tympan sheet to improve the impression by making it stronger at a particular place.
  • (betting) Odds which are set higher than expected or warranted. Favorable odds.
  • (horse racing) A horse going off at higher odds than it appears to warrant, based on its past performances.
  • A decal attached to a computer keyboard to relabel the keys.
  • * 1994 , Roger Frost, The IT in Secondary Science Book (page 56)
    • The keyboard overlay can be a memory jogger and a great help with spelling. In this way the keyboard makes word processing more accessible to younger as well as special needs children.

    Anagrams

    * English heteronyms