Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

parlour

American  
[pahr-ler] / ˈpɑr lər /

noun

Chiefly British.

  1. parlor.

parlour British  
/ ˈpɑːlə /

noun

  1. old-fashioned a living room, esp one kept tidy for the reception of visitors

  2. a reception room in a priest's house, convent, etc

  3. a small room for guests away from the public rooms in an inn, club, etc

  4. a room or shop equipped as a place of business

    a billiard parlor

  5. a small shop, esp one selling cakes and nonalcoholic drinks

  6. Also called: milking parlour.  a building equipped for the milking of cows

"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

Spelling

See -or 1.

Etymology

Origin of parlour

C13: from Anglo-Norman parlur, from Old French parleur room in convent for receiving guests, from parler to speak; see parley

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.

Humberside Police removed 35 bodies and the ashes of 167 people from Legacy's parlour in Hessle Road following a "concern for care of the deceased" in March 2024.

From BBC • Apr. 2, 2026

Legume hordes like clover pull nitrogen from the air, reducing the use of chemical fertilisers, and the milking parlour is 80-percent solar- and wind-powered.

From Barron's • Nov. 11, 2025

Reflecting on the possible reason, she said "I know I am not in the in-crowd. I don't play some of the parlour games".

From BBC • Oct. 25, 2025

When Cai Morgan walked out of the tattoo parlour delighted with his Welsh tribute to his family's mantra, he immediately started taking photos of it for friends and relatives.

From BBC • Jun. 29, 2025

She had her parlour set up just as nice as our ’n.

From "Elijah of Buxton" by Christopher Paul Curtis

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.