chalet

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A wooden house with a low, wide, sloping roof, typical of mountain villages in the Alps.

   Grammar: Often used for a house in a ski resort: a chalet in the Alps.

   Patterns

   • a chalet in the Alps
   • a ski chalet

   We stayed in a snug chalet above the village.

   The old chalet had flower boxes at every window.

   Snow piled up on the roof of the chalet.

2. 2nouncountableBritish

   A small holiday house or cabin, often rented, in the mountains or at a resort.

   Grammar: In British English a chalet can also be a simple hut at a holiday camp.

   Patterns

   • rent a chalet
   • book a chalet

   They booked a chalet near the ski lift for the week.

   The campsite has forty small chalets beside the lake.

   Our chalet slept six people.

Word forms

Common combinations

ski chalet

The ski chalet had a hot tub on the balcony.

Swiss chalet

The restaurant was built to look like a Swiss chalet.

rent a chalet

We rent a chalet every February.

mountain chalet

A mountain chalet sat beside the frozen lake.

chalet-style

The hotel is a chalet-style building with wooden balconies.

Synonyms and how they differ

cabin

A cabin is a plain wooden house in a woodland or lake setting, often cruder than a chalet.

lodge

A lodge is larger and often serves guests, hunters or skiers as a kind of small hotel.

cottage

A cottage is a small house in the countryside and need not be wooden or alpine.

villa

A villa is a larger holiday house, typically in a warm place such as the Mediterranean.

Word family

chalet-style adjective

built in the manner of an alpine chalet

chalet girl noun

British term for a young person who cooks and cleans in a ski chalet

chalet school noun

a school located in a chalet, used in some stories

Commonly confused: chalet or château?

Practice

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