au lait

American

[oh ley, oh le] / oʊ ˈleɪ, oʊ ˈlɛ /

adjective

French Cooking.

prepared or served with milk.

au lait British

/ əʊ ˈleɪ, o lɛ /

adjective

prepared or served with milk

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of au lait

< French: literally, with the milk. See lact-

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Ten fingers, 10 toes, steady breathing, good tone, strong cry, no defects, two small café au lait spots on her thigh—just beauty marks.

From Slate • Nov. 26, 2023

This month, Quinta Brunson, the star and creator of the hit sitcom “Abbott Elementary,” hosted the Billboard Women in Music awards ceremony wearing a structured Gaurav Gupta design the color of café au lait.

From New York Times • Mar. 16, 2023

In this class, Boris will demonstrate how to transform flour, butter and yeast into rich, buttery dough perfect for making Parisian brioche and pains au lait.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 20, 2022

Chanel jackets and croissants dunked in café au lait.

From Salon • Feb. 15, 2021

It is impossible to get real cafe au lait in this country!’

From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023