Les Misérables

American

[ley mee-zey-ra-bl^uh] / leɪ mi zeɪˈra blə /

noun

a novel (1862) by Victor Hugo.

Les Misérables Cultural

(1862) A novel by Victor Hugo. The central character, Jean Valjean, is sentenced to prison for stealing a single loaf of bread. Later, seeking respectability, Valjean is hounded by his archenemy, Inspector Javert.

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The broad canvas of Hugo's novel has been adapted for numerous films and a long-running Broadway (see also Broadway) musical (usually known as Les Miz).

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Above all, he admired Victor Hugo whose “Les Misérables” Khamenei called “a miracle in the world of novel writing.”

From The Wall Street Journal

That’s when they saw “Les Misérables” and “The Phantom of the Opera” on Broadway.

From Los Angeles Times

A lot of work can emerge under conditions that allow for writing and nothing else, but that alone won’t produce a “Les Misérables.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Even though she’s a trained singer, with film credits including “Mamma Mia!” and “Les Misérables,” this peculiar religious epic required an enormous leap of faith.

From Los Angeles Times

Chalamet previously told BBC News that Boyle "dreamt bigger than all of us," referring to her 2009 BGT performance of I Dreamed A Dream from Les Misérables.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023