A dictionary of Confusable Phrases: More Than 10,000 Idioms and Collocations

lay a finger on something • lay one’s finger on
something
lay a finger on something —harm or interfere with smth. how-
ever slightly: Nobody is going, within the foreseeable future,
to lay a finger on the trade unions.
lay one’s finger on something —(also: put one’s finger on some-
thing) 
1
. find or locate smth.: So far I haven’t been able to lay
my finger on the book you requested. 2. point out precisely
where smth. is wrong, etc.: I know that, if I knew enough
about this case, I could lay my finger on the cause.
lay a weight on something • lay weight on
 something
lay a weight on something —(also: put a weight on something)
add weight to smth.; make smth. heavy: Try either bending
a warm board carefully by hand, or lay a weight on it
overnight.
lay weight on something —emphasize smth.; treat smth. as
being particularly important : We have laid weight on the
problem of quality ever since the company’s inception.
– 211 –
lay a weight on something

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lay away money • lay out money
lay away money —save some money: I am trying hard to lay
away enough money to buy a house.
lay out money —spend a certain amount of money: She had
to lay out a lot of money to get her car fixed.
lay cash on the barrelhead • lay cash on the line
lay cash on the barrelhead —(also: put cash on the barrelhead)
pay money at the time of the transaction: It remains to be
seen whether the Russians are ready to lay cash on the barrel-
head.
lay cash on the line —(also: put cash on the line) allocate
money; make a financial commitment: You’re not about to lay
cash on the line without decent answers to a question or two.
Note: 
The expression does not correlate in meaning with the
phrase lay it on the line—(coll.) speak out firmly and frankly
(also: put it on the line): I’ll lay it on the line for you, if you
like. Are you thinking of asking my girl to marry you?