Lille

American

[leel] / lil /

noun

a city in and the capital of Nord, in N France.

Lille British

/ lil /

noun

an industrial city in N France: the medieval capital of Flanders; forms with Roubaix and Tourcoing one of the largest conurbations in France. Pop: 184 657 (1999)

"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

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.

France, beaten finalists in 2022 and tipped to make a deep run this year, rounded off their preparations in style as Michael Olise struck a hat-trick in a 3-1 defeat of Northern Ireland in Lille.

From Barron's • Jun. 8, 2026

It was skipper McGinn who called on the squad to finish the job against Lille and follow boss Unai Emery's lead.

From BBC • Mar. 19, 2026

Ryan Giggs' late free-kick for Manchester United, scored while Lille were still arranging their wall, led the Lille players to walk off in a Champions League last-16 tie.

From BBC • Mar. 18, 2026

Unai Emery became the quickest of the three men to have reached 100 victories as Aston Villa manager when his side defeated Lille in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie.

From BBC • Mar. 12, 2026

First they see some museums: in Lille, France, and in Ghent and Antwerp in Belgium.

From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman

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