laid up in lavender
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Taken great care of, laid away, as things are put in lavender to keep off moths.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “laid up in lavender” mean?
Taken great care of, laid away, as things are put in lavender to keep off moths.
Is “laid up in lavender” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.