dance hall

noun

1

: a large room set aside or suitable for dances

especially : a public hall offering facilities for dancing

2

dancehall

ˈdan(t)s-ˌhȯl 

ˈdän(t)s-

: a genre of Jamaican music derived from reggae in which an artist improvises vocals over a recorded or live beat

… anyone who knew her or worked with her knows that she loves dancehall and has much respect and passion for the genre.

—Stephanie K

—often used before another noun

dancehall music

A key form of symbolic capital obtainable in Jamaica is knowledge and possession of many Jamaican dancehall records.

—Marvin Sterling

Examples of dance hall in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Most notably, the saloon and pool hall on the corner (in the background of the postcard) featured an opera house and dance hall upstairs, funded in part by donations from other local merchants. —Randy Mason, Kansas City Star, 8 May 2024

From jazz spots to the opera house, from dance halls to rock clubs, the Bay Area has nurtured and welcomed unforgettable voices that continue to inspire and move listeners. —Andrew Gilbert, The Mercury News, 1 May 2024

The symphony is aiming to retain the lake and entrance, and possibly Coney's Moonlite Gardens dance hall. —Scott Wartman, The Enquirer, 20 Mar. 2024

Staff Pick: The hero of the Monterey Park ballroom mass shooting Brandon Tsay wrestled a firearm away from the hands of a gunman at his family’s dance hall in Monterey Park one year ago Sunday. —Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 19 Jan. 2024

Regarding jewelry, my father had a small summer dance hall in Michigan, but his other occupation in the winter was buying and selling jewelry and small antiques. —Stephanie Sporn, Vogue, 27 Mar. 2024

Originally a private home, 3114 Paseo was turned into a dance hall and union meeting space in the early 1920s with a three-story addition, including an auditorium more than 100 feet long. —Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 25 Mar. 2024

In the neighboring towns of Luckenbach and Albert, there are historic dance halls, while the Lyndon B. Johnson State Park is just across the road. —Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 20 Mar. 2024

Ludlow Historic Society presents program about the park, which had an 85-acre lake, clubhouse, dance hall, motorcycle racing and modern rides. —Luann Gibbs, The Enquirer, 3 Mar. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1845, in the meaning defined at sense 1