au

This is a term from French meaning "to the," "at the," "with the." It is considered an affectation to use foreign words unnecessarily, but there is no suitable English equivalent for au in such phrases as au beurre ("with butter"), au contraire ("on the opposite side," "to the contrary"), au fait ("expert" or "experienced"), au gratin ("with cheese"), and au naturel ("in the natural state"). Unlike à la, it is always used with another French word. See also à la.