lieu

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English liue, used in the phrase “in liue of”,^[2][3] borrowed from Anglo-Norman liu, also lieu,^[2][4] later replaced by the form borrowed from Middle French lieu,^[5][6][7] which in Old French was also leu and lou, "place, position, situation, rank", recorded from the 10th century.^[8][6] The French word comes from Latin locus (“place”).^{[9][8][10][11]} Old Latin had the form stlocus,^[8][3] of uncertain origin according to Etymonline;^[8] Klein derives it from Proto-Indo-European *stel- (“to place, cause to stand”), the root he also gives for stall.^[3][7] The Anglo-Norman noun is recorded from the early 12th century, meaning place, position, post or opportunity, and already in phrases meaning "instead of".^[4] Weekley explains the English phrase “in lieu of” as a rendering of au lieu de.^[12]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the phrase in (the) lieu of, in the place or stead of: about 1290, in the South English Legendary.^[9] Etymonline also dates the word to the late 13th century, usually in this phrase;^[8] Barnhart dates in lieu of to 1534, noting a possible single earlier use about 1300.^[6]

Semantic evolution

In English the noun has lived almost only in its phrases: in lieu of meant both "instead of" and "in exchange or return for", as a payment, penalty or reward,^[9] and the absolute in lieu, "instead", is recorded from 1599.^[9] Johnson (1755) noted that the word was used only with in.^[13] A use without the preposition, for something given in place of another thing, appears once in Lancelot Andrewes (1592),^[9] and the plain sense "stead, room" is found in the 19th century, in the jurist John Austin, but is rare.^[9] Merriam-Webster labels the bare noun archaic.^[7] In Canada the word is used before a noun for time off work given instead of pay for overtime, as in lieu time.^[14]

Timeline

• c. 1290 – in (the) lieu of, in the place of; also in return for.^[9]
• 1534 – in lieu of in Barnhart's dating.^[6]
• 1592 – something given in lieu of another thing (now obsolete, rare).^[9]
• 1599 – in lieu, instead.^[9]
• 1755 – Johnson records it only in the phrase in lieu.^[13]
• before 1859 – stead, room, without a preposition (rare).^[9]

Meanings

Noun

1. in lieu of: in place of; instead of: They received vouchers in lieu of cash.^[7][9][14]
2. in lieu: instead: He had no ticket, so he paid a fine in lieu.^[7][14][9]
3. (archaic) Place, stead.^[7][15][14]

Related words

• locus
• local
• locate
• lieutenant
• milieu
• stall

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
3. ^ a b c Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
4. ^ a b Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
5. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
6. ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
7. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
8. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
10. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
11. ^ Skeat, Walter W. (1911), A Concise Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, new ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
12. ^ Weekley, Ernest (1921), An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, London: John Murray
13. ^ a b Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
14. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
15. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin