dance

¹dance

verb \ˈdan(t)s, ˈdän(t)s\

danceddanc·ing

Definition of DANCE

intransitive verb

1

: to engage in or perform a dance

2

: to move or seem to move up and down or about in a quick or lively manner

transitive verb

1

: to perform or take part in as a dancer

2

: to cause to dance

3

: to bring into a specified condition by dancing

— dance·able \ˈdan(t)-sə-bəl\ adjective

— danc·er noun

— dance attendance

: to attend in an eager and servile manner <a celebrity used to having people dance attendance on him>

Examples of DANCE

1. He never learned how to dance.
2. She has always loved to dance.
3. I like the song but it's really hard to dance to.
4. He danced her across the floor.
5. She dances with a famous ballet company.
6. She's a great actress, and she can dance and sing, too.

Origin of DANCE

Middle English dauncen, from Anglo-French dancer

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to DANCE

Synonyms

foot (it), hoof (it), step, shake a leg, trip the light fantastic

Related Words

prance, strut, trip; boogie (also boogy or boogey), bop, fox-trot, gavotte, jig, jitterbug, jive, mambo, polka, shag, shimmy, shuffle, tango, tap-dance, twist, waltz; tread

Near Antonyms

float, hang, hover

Other Dance Terms

attitude, honor, saltatory, sashay, taw

²dance

noun, often attributive

Definition of DANCE

1

: an act or instance of dancing

2

: a series of rhythmic and patterned bodily movements usually performed to music

3

: a social gathering for dancing

4

: a piece of music by which dancing may be guided

5

: the art of dancing

Examples of DANCE

1. They can do all the popular dances.
2. The only dance he knows how to do is the twist.
3. How about one more dance?
4. He stopped right in the middle of the dance to tie his shoe.
5. He did a celebration dance in the end zone after scoring the touchdown.
6. She studied dance in college.

First Known Use of DANCE

14th century

Related to DANCE

Synonyms

ball, cotillion (also cotillon), formal, hop, prom

Related Words

blowout, celebration, event, festival, festivity, fete (or fête), gala, masque (also mask), masquerade, mixer, party, reception, shindig, soiree (or soirée); hoedown, square dance

Other Dance Terms

attitude, honor, saltatory, sashay, taw

Rhymes with DANCE

chance, glance, lance, prance, trance, trans

dance

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Form of expression that uses bodily movements that are rhythmic, patterned (or sometimes improvised), and usually accompanied by music. One of the oldest art forms, dance is found in every culture and is performed for purposes ranging from the ceremonial, liturgical, and magical to the theatrical, social, and simply aesthetic. In Europe, tribal dances often evolved into folk dances, which became stylized in the social dances of the 16th-century European courts. Ballet developed from the court dances and became refined by innovations in choreography and technique. In the 20th century, modern dance introduced a new mode of expressive movement. See also allemande; ballroom dance; country dance; courante; gavotte; gigue; hula; jitterbug; Ländler; mazurka; merengue; minuet; morris dance; pavane; polka; polonaise; quadrille; samba; sarabande; square dance; sword dance; tango; tap dance; waltz.