Bordelaise is a noun, often used in culinary contexts to describe sauces or flavors associated with Bordeaux or Bordelaise sauce. It can also refer to a person or object linked to Bordeaux. The term is specialized and typically appears in gastronomy or French-influenced cuisine, carrying a refined, historical nuance. In English usage, it’s mostly encountered in culinary writing or menu descriptions.
"The bordelaise jus imparted a deep, velvety finish to the steak."
"A *sauce bordelaise* is classic in French bistro cuisine, rich with shallots and red wine."
"The chef demonstrated a modern bordelaise reduction to complement the beef."
"She wore a bordelaise velvet gown that echoed Bordeaux’s wine-hued elegance."
Bordelaise derives from Bordelais, the demonym for people or things from Bordeaux, a city in southwestern France. The French root Bordelais comes from Bordeaux, the city’s name, which itself traces to a Gallo-Roman settlement. The term evolved in culinary usage: Bordelaise sauce (sauce bordelaise) emerged in classic French gastronomy as a wine-and-shallot reduction enriched with bone marrow or butter, linking the dish to Bordeaux’s vineyard heritage. In English, bordelaise appears mainly in refined menus, haute cuisine write-ups, and historical culinary texts. First known use in English is tied to 19th- or early 20th-century French culinary influence, with translations appearing across cookbooks describing wine-based reductions. Over time, “bordelaise” has come to convey elegance, wine-centric depth, and a direct tie to Bordeaux’s culinary prestige. The word’s gendered form and adjectives in French (bœuf bordelaise, sauce bordelaise) reinforce its gastronomic pedigree in international dining literature.
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Words that rhyme with "Bordelaise"
-ise sounds
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Bordelaise is pronounced bor-dè-lase, with the stress on the second syllable in most English usages. IPA: US /ˌbɔːrdəlˈeɪz/; UK /ˌbɔːdəˈleɪz/; AU /ˌbɔːdəˈleɪz/. Start with 'bor' as in Bordeaux, then a clear 'deh' (rarely as 'd’'), and end with a long 'laze' like 'layz'. Keep the final -aise smooth and not syllabically heavy. You’ll hear the emphasis fall on the final syllable, with the ‘lai’ portion pronounced as /eɪ/ in most accents.
Common mistakes: (1) misplacing stress on the first syllable: Bordelaise should emphasize the second half, not BOR. (2) pronouncing the ending as a hard ‘-aiz’ or with a silent -e; the ending should be /eɪz/ like ‘lays’. (3) compressing vowels, saying /bɔɚdəlæz/ instead of /bɔːrdəlˈeɪz/. Correction: keep the /ˈeɪ/ in the final syllable, elongate the first syllable slightly, and maintain the French-like /l/ before the final /eɪz/.
US tends to have a tense /ɔː/ in the first syllable and a rhotic /r/. UK often features a more clipped /ˈbɔː.dəˈleɪz/ with non-rhoticity affecting the /r/ before vowels. Australian typically shows /ˈbɔː.dəˈleɪz/ with a broad /ɒ/ or /ɔː/ in the first syllable and a smooth /eɪ/ in the final. The stress pattern remains on the penultimate or antepenultimate syllable depending on speaker, but the final -aise is clearly /eɪz/ across accents.
The difficulty lies in the borrowed French phonemes and the final -aise, which in English often carries a diphthong that differs from French. The /ɔː/ in the first syllable and the /eɪ/ in the final syllable require precise tongue placement and lip rounding. The liaison-like flow between syllables and the subtle French nasal feel can challenge English speakers. Practicing the middle vowels and final glide separately helps you nail the rhythm.
A distinctive feature is the final -aise cluster where the final /z/ voice overlaps with the preceding /eɪ/ glide. You should avoid a hard ‘s’ or clipping the final vowel. Emphasize the smooth transition into the -aise as /eɪz/ rather than breaking into /aɪz/ or /əz/. The middle syllable often contains a schwa-like /ə/ in rapid speech in many English-speaking speakers; keep it light but audible to preserve the word’s flow.
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