Make Your Point > Archived Issues > MILIEU

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connect today's word to others: Why does milieu have the word lieu inside it? Let's see! The atmosphere of a certain time period and place, within a certain group of people, is a milieu. We took that word from French, where it literally means "middle place." That explains why it looks like lieu, which literally means "place." (The phrase "in lieu of" means "in place of, instead of.") See if you can recall a term related to lieu and milieu, also from French, that means "a middle place, a happy medium, an appropriate average: something that's just right and not too extreme." It's j___e milieu. And, see if you can recall a close synonym of milieu, from German, that means "the spirit of the times: the mood of a particular time and place in history." It's z__tg___t. (To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.) make your point with... "MILIEU" A milieu is a specific social environment. In other words, a milieu is a cultural context: a time, a place, and a group of people with their own shared habits and values. Pronunciation: Either "mill YOU" or "mill YUH." (I prefer the first way. The second way sounds more true to the word's French quality, but it can sound snobby.) Part of speech: Countable noun. (Countable nouns, like "bottle," "piece," and "decision," are words for things that can be broken into exact units. You talk about "a bottle," "three pieces," and "many decisions." Likewise, talk about one milieu or multiple milieus or milieux.) Other forms: For the plural, pick "milieus" or "milieux." (Pronounce "milieux" the same as "milieu.") (I prefer "milieus." Pick "milieux" if you prefer to stay true to the word's Frenchness--and you don't mind sounding a bit snobby.) How to use it: When you need a formal word for a cultural atmosphere, one that refers to that atmosphere's particular time, place, mood, attitude and so on, call it a milieu. Talk about people, places, events, and stories being in, within, out of, or outside a certain milieu. People and things can fit into their milieu, grow up in a certain milieu, emerge or diverge from their milieu, embody their milieu, explore their milieu and so on. We have two ways to specify a kind of milieu. First, you can add adjectives: a corporate milieu; a gritty, impoverished milieu; "[the novel's] middle-class, apartment-block milieu" (The Economist). Second, you can add the word "of:" the milieu of Washington politics, the milieu of Cuban-Americans in Florida. Or, why not use both ways? Here's The Guardian: "a perilously privileged milieu of performance poetry and small magazines." examples: Shakespeare's humor can die on the page, plucked from its original milieu on the stage. "And he belongs to the same liberal, diverse, woke milieu as the show’s characters. He attended Oberlin College, claims to have had his life changed at Burning Man and says he is trying to check his power and white privilege."     —Steven Kurutz, The New York Times, 18 January 2018 study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "milieu" means when you can explain it without saying "surrounding culture" or "social sphere." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "One of the quirks of the (specific type of) milieu is that _____." Example: "One of the quirks of the small-town Pacific island milieu is that dressing for staying in is essentially the same as dressing for going out." before you review: Spend at least 20 seconds occupying your mind with the game below. Then try the review questions. Don’t go straight to the review now—let your working memory empty out first. Last month, we played a game called "Uncommon Opposites." In each issue, I gave you a rare word and its definition, and you came up with its more familiar opposite. From our previous issue: Something nullibiquitous exists nowhere. What’s the opposite? Answer: Ubiquitous. Next, a new game for July: "Sleek Slogans." I'll take a familiar slogan from a company or a product, express that slogan in plain language, and tell you the specific qualities the slogan has (like rhyme or alliteration), and then you come up with the real slogan as well as the name of the company or product. For example: Rewrite this slogan using concision (the use of as few words as possible) and parallelism (the use of balanced clauses or phrases): "Spend less money by buying our inexpensive products, and therefore improve your quality of life." Answer: That's Walmart's slogan: "Save money. Live better." Try this one today: Rewrite this slogan using antithesis (the side-by-side placement of contrasting ideas): "Our pizza is just as appealing as a delivered pizza." review today's word: 1. A near opposite of MILIEU is A. BAILIWICK. B. HINTERLAND. C. INERTIA. 2. Anecdotal evidence suggests that _____ milieu can make all the difference for people _____. A. a daily .. working to lose weight B. an open, supportive .. being treated for cancer C. a lack of .. trying to overcome a pathological fear Answers are below. a final word: Make Your Point is crafted with love and brought to you each weekday morning by Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From Liesl's blog:    36 ways to study words.    Why we forget words, & how to remember them.    How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. Disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes. Answers to review questions: 1. B 2. B