Translation guide
How to express 'lay face down' in Japanese, covering placing objects face down, lying face down oneself, and related expressions.
カードを裏返しに置いてください。
Lay the card face down.
彼はベッドにうつ伏せになった。
He lay face down on the bed.
To put something (a card, a book, a phone) with its front or face downward.
Literally 'place it turned inside out/back side up'. This is the most common and natural way to say 'lay something face down'.
カードを裏返しに置いてください。
Please lay the card face down.
He laid his smartphone face down on the desk.
Uses the verb 伏せる (to turn down, to lay face down). Often used for cards or flat objects.
トランプを伏せて置いてください。
Please lay the playing cards face down.
A verb meaning 'to lay something face down' or 'to turn something over'. Can be used alone.
カードを伏せる。
Lay the card face down.
To position one's own body with the front facing downward.
The standard expression for 'to lie face down' or 'to be in a prone position'. うつ伏せ means 'lying on one's stomach'.
彼はベッドにうつ伏せになった。
He lay face down on the bed.
うつ伏せで寝るのは苦しい。
Sleeping face down is uncomfortable.
Specifically 'to sleep face down'.
赤ちゃんをうつ伏せに寝かせないでください。
Do not lay the baby face down to sleep.
Literally 'become belly crawl'. Means to lie flat on one's stomach, often with a nuance of crawling or being prostrate.
兵士たちは腹ばいになって隠れた。
The soldiers lay face down and hid.
To place another person in a face-down position.
Transitive version of うつ伏せになる. Means 'to lay someone face down'.
患者をうつ伏せにしてください。
Please lay the patient face down.
Causative form of 伏せる, meaning 'to make someone lie face down'. Often used in commands or instructions.
犯人を地面に伏せさせた。
They made the suspect lie face down on the ground.
うつ伏せ is the general term for lying face down, used in daily life and medical contexts. 腹ばい often implies a crawling posture or being prostrate, and can sound more deliberate or military.
うつ伏せで本を読む。
Read a book lying on one's stomach.
腹ばいで前進する。
Crawl forward on one's stomach.
While 顔を下にして (face down) can describe a person's position, it is not natural for objects. Use 裏返しに or 伏せて for things.
携帯電話を机の上に裏返しに置いてください。
Please place your phone face down on the table.
医者に診察台にうつ伏せになるように言われた。
The doctor asked me to lie face down on the examination table.