layer

 
Pronunciation: /ˈleɪə/

noun

  • 1a sheet, quantity, or thickness of material, typically one of several, covering a surface or body: arrange a layer of aubergines in a dish
  • a level of seniority in the hierarchy of an organization: a managerial layer
  • 2 [in combination] a person or thing that lays something: the majority of fish are egg-layers
  • 3a shoot fastened down to take root while attached to the parent plant: they can be increased from cuttings and layers

verb

[with object] (often as adjective layered)
  • 1arrange in a layer or layers: the current trend for layered clothes
  • cut (hair) in overlapping layers: her layered, shoulder-length hair
  • 2propagate (a plant) as a layer: a layered shoot

Origin:

Middle English (denoting a mason): from lay1 + -er1. The sense 'stratum of material covering a surface' (early 17th century) may represent a respelling of an obsolete agricultural use of lair1 denoting quality of soil