au pair
Americannoun
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au pairs
plural
adjective
noun
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a young foreigner, usually a girl, who undertakes housework in exchange for board and lodging, esp in order to learn the language
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( as modifier )
an au pair girl
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a young person who lives temporarily with a family abroad in exchange for a reciprocal arrangement with his or her own family
verb
adverb
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of au pair
First recorded in 1965–70; from French: literally, “equal, even,” referring to the equal exchange of work for room and board; au contraction of à le “at the” + pair “equal” (noun); cf. à la, pair 1 ( def. )
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.
Anna, who arrived in Germany as an au pair from Ukraine 15 years ago, now works in human resources at the joint venture.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 2, 2026
Here he is the 1919 go-between for Esther Nacht, a 14-year-old Jewish refugee whom he places with the Winslow family as an au pair.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2025
The second level features “a second primary suite, au pair suite with kitchenette and private entry, and additional en suites,” according to the listing.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2025
After growing up in Tidworth, Wiltshire, she travelled to India at the age of 18 where she worked as an au pair to a military family until she was 21.
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2025
After I was given a glass of warm milk we began discussing Peter Pauling’s discovery of Nina, Max’s young Danish au pair girl.
From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
