Sunday Word: Milieu
milieu [mil-yoo, meel-; French mee-lyœ]
noun:
the physical or social setting in which something occurs or develops; surroundings, especially of a social or cultural nature
Examples:
This unique geographic, historical and political milieu confers a certain intrigue to this otherwise familiar fare, but the story itself is pure Western, the classic genre explicitly referenced in the plaintive score by sibling composers Diego, Nora and Lionel Baldenweg, and in the seasoned narrative beats of the script by Mark Michael McNally and Terry Loane. (Katie Walsh, 'In the Land of Saints and Sinners,' where Liam Neeson once again has his vengeance, Los Angeles Times, March 2024)
Knobkerry was, Ms Kitto explained, a brick-and-mortar fixture of the Downtown arts scene, both a trading post and junction point for an ever-evolving cast of the artists, actors, dancers and musicians that created a milieu that sometimes seems in retrospect more legend than truth. (Guy Trebay, An East Village Boutique Where the Avant-Garde Gathered, The New York Times, October 2021)
The realization dawns that Famuyiwa has made a mostly charming movie despite its cliche milieu. (Jake Coyle, Our Family Wedding’ surpasses stereotype, The San Diego Union-Tribune, March 2010)
Let's go ahead and assume that, like the helicopter, the man did not look like this when he entered Wanda's reality. Maybe he was wearing a Hazmat suit and her mind changed it to a beekeeper outfit to better fit the suburban milieu. (Eliana Dockterman, All the Marvel Clues You Missed in WandaVision's First Two Episodes, Time, January 2021)
She called everywhere; her calls were returned with enthusiasm, and by the time people found out that she was not exactly of their milieu, they liked her, and it did not seem to matter. (E M Forster, A Room With A View)
Origin:
'surroundings, medium, environment,' 1854, from French milieu, 'middle, medium, mean,' literally 'middle place' (12c), from mi 'middle' (from Latin medius, from PIE root medhyo- 'middle') + lieu 'place' (Online Etmology Dictionary)