thé au lait
thé au lait is the French way to say "tea with milk".
The phrase refers to a drink made by adding milk to tea.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of thé (tea), au (with/at the) and lait (milk).
Which one should you use?
While English speakers often say 'black tea' to refer to the type of tea, in French, thé noir refers specifically to the tea leaf type, whereas thé au lait describes the preparation.
Did you know?
- The word thé is a linguistic relative of the word 'chai'. Both entered European languages via different Chinese dialects, with thé arriving through Hokkien and Dutch.
- Despite its popularity in the UK, 'thé au lait' is much less common in France than 'café au lait', as French tea culture traditionally favors tea served plain or with lemon.
- The French word lait shares the same ancient root as the English word 'lactate'. Both trace back to the Proto-Indo-European word *ǵlákts.
Examples in context
- Où est le thé au lait ?Where is the tea with milk?This sentence is useful for asking for the location of the thé au lait.Tatoeba #624952 by qdii, translation #453458 by saasmath
- Je ne bois jamais de thé au lait.I never drink tea with milk.This sentence is useful for stating a habit regarding thé au lait.Tatoeba #3278103 by sicerabibax, translation #1811927 by marko
- Préfères-tu le thé au lait ou au citron ?Do you like tea with milk or lemon?This sentence is useful for comparing a preference for thé au lait against tea with lemon.Tatoeba #3657377 by Hikari, translation #5863861 by peterius
- Je voudrais du thé avec du lait, s'il vous plaît.I would like some tea with milk, please.
- Pourriez-vous m'apporter du thé avec du lait, s'il vous plaît?Could you bring me some tea with milk, please?
- Je veux du thé avec du lait.I want tea with milk.
- Est-ce que je peux avoir du thé avec du lait?Can I have tea with milk?
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
In a small cafe during the afternoon.
- NathanTu veux un thé au lait ?Do you want a tea with milk?
- ChloéOui, s'il te plaît, Nathan.Yes, please, Nathan.
- NathanD'accord, je vais le commander.Okay, I will order it.
- ChloéMerci beaucoup, c'est gentil.Thank you very much, that's kind.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry thé au lait, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries lait, thé, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
