lay of the land, the

Idioms and Phrases

The nature, arrangement, or disposition of something, the general state of affairs, as in Once we know the lay of the land, we can plan our advertising campaign . A related expression is how the land lies , as in Let's be cautious till we know how the land lies . This usage originated in Britain about 1700 as the lie of the land and is still so used there.

Related Words

• contour