Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

le

/leɪ/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.50 in modern English

Syllables: le
IPA: /leɪ/

2

Scrabble Score

2

Letters

1

Syllables

2

Unique Chars

Meaning

article

the

Humorous; Informal

prep

Next to, near (still used in some place names).

Obsolete

noun

Initialism of law enforcement.

Uncountable

noun

Initialism of limited edition.

Uncountable

noun

Initialism of luxury edition.

Uncountable

name

Example Sentences

"If you tickle me again, I'ma kick you in le balls."
"Le mew. Le purr."
"Waiter: 'Bonjour! I am le waiter on this ship! [...] Ah! Le strong silent type!'"
"[…]upon arrival, le girlfriend realizes she has left her ID back at my house (a 1 1/2 hour roundtrip on the Metro), […]"
"And then le boyfriend perks up and names around 8 different brands (Stila, MAC, Becca, Nars etc..) - I was *SO* proud of him!! :)"
"That was always OUR song (me and le girlfriend of the time)."

Etymology

Borrowed from French le (“the”). Popularized especially by the expression le sigh.

Origin

Source language: Old French

Word Breakdown

Root: lez, -

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /leɪ/

Usage

Inflected Forms

Les (plural)

Phrases

le sigh

Frequently Paired Words

moi ze

Synonyms

lupus erythematosus

Homonyms

luh (with /ə/) lay lei ley (with /eɪ/ and pane-pain merger) lea Lee leigh li (with /iː/)

Rhymes With

the manza ya luh they me way may day say all-day away

Questions

How do you pronounce le?: The recorded pronunciation is /leɪ/.
What does le mean?: the
Where does le come from?: It is traced to Old French.

How to pronounce le

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “le”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/leɪ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “le”.
Repeat and practice — Say “le” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.