boîte au lait

\bwa.t‿o lɛ\

/\bwa.t‿o lɛ\/ noun

The verdict

“boîte au lait” is outside the top-ranked French vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
13
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Récipient métallique muni d’un couvercle et d’une anse, destiné à transporter le lait acheté.

Key facts for boîte au lait
PropertyValue
Headwordboîte au lait
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\bwa.t‿o lɛ\
Letters13
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “boîte au lait” sits in French frequency

boîte au lait falls outside the top-100,000 ranked French words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for boîte au lait is 13 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \bwa.t‿o lɛ\. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for boîte au lait, a sign its spelling follows regular French conventions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is boîte au lait, spelled B-O-Î-T-E- -A-U- -L-A-I-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Récipient métallique muni d’un couvercle et d’une anse, destiné à transporter le lait acheté.
  2. 2
    Sein d’une femme.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "boîte au lait"?
"boîte au lait" is spelled B-O-Î-T-E- -A-U- -L-A-I-T. The IPA pronunciation is \bwa.t‿o lɛ\.
What does "boîte au lait" mean?
As a noun, "boîte au lait" means: Récipient métallique muni d’un couvercle et d’une anse, destiné à transporter le lait acheté.
How do you pronounce "boîte au lait"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "boîte au lait" is \bwa.t‿o lɛ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "boîte au lait" come from?
"boîte au lait" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “boîte au lait”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct French spelling is B-O-Î-T-E- -A-U- -L-A-I-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \bwa.t‿o lɛ\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list