to spread out or lay something flat (e.g., lay out a futon, mat, or sheet).
夜になったら床に布団を敷いて寝る。
At night I lay out a futon on the floor and sleep.
ピクニックのためにレジャーシートを敷いた。
We laid out a picnic sheet for the picnic.
to place or lay down cushions or pads (e.g., place zabuton cushions).
座布団を四つ並べて床に敷いてください。
Please line up four zabuton cushions and lay them on the floor.
法事のために座敷に座布団をきれいに敷いた。
For the memorial service we neatly laid out zabuton cushions in the tatami room.
to impose or promulgate something widely (e.g., to impose martial law or regulations).
政府は治安維持のために一時的に戒厳令を敷いた。
The government temporarily imposed martial law to maintain security.
新しい安全規則が工場に敷かれた。
New safety regulations were put in place at the factory.
to pin someone down or dominate them (used figuratively, as in the idiom '尻に敷く' meaning to be bossed around someone).
彼は妻に尻に敷かれているとよく冗談を言う。
He often jokes that he is bossed around by his wife.
会社ではあの上司が部下を厳しく敷いている。
At the company that boss is strict and keeps subordinates under tight control.
to lay down infrastructure such as railway tracks, cables, or pipes.
新幹線の線路を敷く作業は慎重に進められている。
The work to lay the Shinkansen tracks is being carried out carefully.
街路の地下に光ファイバーケーブルを敷いた。
We laid fiber-optic cables under the city streets.
to deploy troops or personnel (somewhat formal).
国境付近に兵力を敷いたと報じられた。
It was reported that forces were deployed near the border.
重要拠点に警備隊を敷いて警戒を強めた。
Security forces were deployed at key points to strengthen vigilance.
intransitively/poetically, to spread over (e.g., frost or snow covering an area); a literary usage.
朝、庭は霜に敷かれて白く輝いていた。
In the morning the garden was covered with frost and gleamed white.
冬になると村は雪に敷かれ、静かな景色になる。
In winter the village is laid under snow and becomes a quiet scene.