ballerina

noun

bal·​le·​ri·​na ˌba-lə-ˈrē-nə 

: a woman who is a ballet dancer : danseuse

Examples of ballerina in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Bardot was born into a wealthy Parisian family in 1934 and trained as a ballerina before landing the modeling jobs that launched her whirlwind career. —Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 28 Dec. 2025

San Francisco Ballet principal ballerinas Madeline Woo and Nikisha Fogo have performed in their fair share of Nutcrackers — both of them growing up as dancers and performing the show professionally many times over. —Tabitha Parent, PEOPLE, 23 Dec. 2025

For Atkins, her dream of being a professional ballerina started at the age of 5. —Najahe Sherman, CBS News, 22 Dec. 2025

The role of Carmen was played with fiery promiscuity by ballerina Ariana Gonzalez, who was flirtatious with a fan in one scene and brandishing a knife in another. —Marcia Luttrell, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Italian, "woman who dances professionally or for pleasure," feminine counterpart of ballarino, ballerino "professional dancer, person who loves to dance," from ballare "to dance" (going back to Late Latin ballāre) + -ar-, -er-, extension in nominal derivation + -ino, suffix of occupations (as in postino "mailman," scalpellino "stonemason"), going back to Latin -īnus -ine entry 1 — more at ball entry 3

First Known Use

1815, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing ballerina

• prima ballerina

Rhymes for ballerina

• acarina
• casuarina
• celestina
• concertina
• filipina
• foramina
• leucaena
• littorina
• scarlatina
• semolina
• serotina
• signorina

Kids Definition

ballerina

noun

bal·​le·​ri·​na ˌbal-ə-ˈrē-nə 

: a female ballet dancer