Purlieu — Pur lieu, n. [Corrupted (by influence of lieu place) fr. OF. pural[ e]e, poral[ e]e (equiv. to LL. perambulatio a survey of boundaries, originally, a going through); por (L. pro, confused, however, with L. per through) + al[ e]e. See {Pro }, and… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
purlieu — index bailiwick, periphery, vicinity Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
purlieu — ► NOUN (pl. purlieus or purlieux) 1) (purlieus) the area near or surrounding a place. 2) Brit. historical a tract on the border of a forest. ORIGIN probably from Old French puralee a walk round to settle boundaries … English terms dictionary
purlieu — [pʉrl′yo͞o΄, pʉr′lo͞o΄] n. [altered (infl. by Fr lieu, place) < Anglo Fr puralee < OFr puralée < puraler, to go through < pur , por (< L pro , for, but used for per , through) + aler, to go: see ALLEY1] 1. Historical an outlying… … English World dictionary
purlieu — /perr looh, perrl yooh/, n. 1. purlieus, environs or neighborhood. 2. a place where one may range at large; confines or bounds. 3. a person s haunt or resort. 4. an outlying district or region, as of a town or city. 5. a piece of land on the edge … Universalium
purlieu — [15] Purlieu has no etymological connection with French lieu ‘place’, which seems to have been grafted on to it in the 16th century in ignorance of its origins. It comes from Anglo Norman puralee ‘act of walking round’, hence ‘area of land beyond … The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins
purlieu — pur•lieu [[t]ˈpɜr lu, ˈpɜrl yu[/t]] n. pl. lieus 1) purlieus environs or neighborhood 2) a place frequented by a person; haunt 3) an outlying district of a town or city 4) a piece of land on the edge of a forest, orig. land once part of a royal… … From formal English to slang
purlieu — /ˈpɜlju/ (say perlyooh) noun 1. a piece of land on the border of a forest. 2. any bordering, neighbouring, or outlying region or district. 3. (plural) neighbourhood. 4. a place where one may range at large; one s bounds. 5. one s haunt or resort …
purlieu — [15] Purlieu has no etymological connection with French lieu ‘place’, which seems to have been grafted on to it in the 16th century in ignorance of its origins. It comes from Anglo Norman puralee ‘act of walking round’, hence ‘area of land beyond … Word origins
purlieu — noun Etymology: Middle English purlewe land severed from an English royal forest by perambulation, from Anglo French puralé perambulation, from puraler to travel through, measure, from pur thoroughly + aler to go more at purchase Date: 15th… … New Collegiate Dictionary