in lieu of

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English

Etymology

From French au lieu de, from the classical Latin expression (in) locō, meaning “in place (of)”, consisting of the ablative of locus (place), preceded or followed by a genitive, as in “parentis locō esse”, Cicero, Div. in Caecil., 19.61.

Pronunciation

  • Audio (US):(file)

Preposition

in lieu of

  1. instead of; in place of
    They gave him a cash award, in lieu of the promised prize package.
  2. (proscribed) in light of
    In lieu of recent events, more caution is needed.

Usage notes

Using it to mean “in light of” is etymologically incorrect (it is literally “in place of”), and thus considered an error.[1]

Translations

References