Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

milieu

/mɪlˈju/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.93 in modern English

Syllables
mi-lieu
IPA
/mɪlˈju/
8
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars

Meaning

Example Sentences

Etymology

PIE word *me Borrowed from French milieu (“physical or social environment; group of people with a common point of view”), from Middle French milieu, meilleu, mileu, from Old French milliu, meillieu, mileu (“middle”), from mi- (prefix meaning ‘half’) (from Latin medius (“half; middle”)) + lieu, leu (“place”) (from Latin locus (“place; spot (specific location)”)).

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /mɪlˈju/
  • British English: /ˈmiːljɜː/

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

Phrases

Synonyms

Rhymes With

Questions

How do you pronounce milieu?
The recorded pronunciation is /mɪlˈju/.
What does milieu mean?
An environment or setting; a medium; environs
Where does milieu come from?
It is traced to Middle French.

How to pronounce milieu

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