parleyvoo

British

/ ˌpɑːlɪˈvuː /

verb

to speak French

"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

noun

the French language
a Frenchman

"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 parleyvoo

C20: jocular respelling of parlez-vous ( français ) ? do you speak (French)?

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.

Well, it's been nice to stop and parleyvoo a second.

From Babbitt by Lewis, Sinclair

"She kem at once," said Tagg, "an' they began to parleyvoo as quick as you like—" "They spoke French?" broke in Irene, with a sidelong glance at Dick.

From The Wheel O' Fortune by Tracy, Louis

You won't blow the gab?—that's why you couldn't have your parleyvoo this morning.

From Australia Felix by Richardson, Henry Handel

The colonel was a very singular old fellow; he used to learn a page of Chambaud's grammar, and to translate Telemaque, every morning, and he kept six French masters to teach him to parleyvoo.

From Miscellaneous Writings and Speeches — Volume 1 by Macaulay, Thomas Babington Macaulay, Baron

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