purlieu
/ˈpɝl(j)u/noun
purlieu is spelled P-U-R-L-I-E-U: 7 letters. It appears about once in every 76 million words in written English, the 275,970th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, purlieu means “The ground on the edges of a forest, especially when partly subject to the same forest laws concerning game hunting etc” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of purlieu is purlieus or purlieux.
How many letters and syllables are in purlieu?
| Letters | 7: P-U-R-L-I-E-U |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 76 million words; the 275,970th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is purlieu?
Purlieu appears about once in every 76 million words in written English, the 275,970th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce purlieu?
- UK /ˈpɜːljuː/
- US /ˈpɝl(j)u/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-ncalif-purlieu.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with purlieu?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as purlieu from its last stressed vowel (/ɜɹlu/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of purlieu
- purlieus plural
- purlieux plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does purlieu mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The ground on the edges of a forest, especially when partly subject to the same forest laws concerning game hunting etc.
- 2
The outskirts of any place; an adjacent district; the environs or neighborhood; milieu.
I wanted a beer, but coffee was undeniably easier to be had in the purlieus of the University, so we went into a cafe.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does purlieu come from?
From Middle English purlewe (“piece of land on the edge of a forest”), modification under the influence of Old French lieu (“place”) of porale, purale (“royal perambulation”), from Old French porale, from poraler (“to traverse”), from por- (“forth”) (from Latin prō-) + aler, aller (“to go”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).