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pirouette

noun
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pir·​ou·​ette | \ ˌpir-ə-ˈwet How to pronounce pirouette (audio) \

Definition of pirouette

: a rapid whirling about of the body especially : a full turn on the toe or ball of one foot in ballet
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Other Words from pirouette

pirouette intransitive verb

Examples of pirouette in a Sentence

the elegant pirouettes of the prima ballerina the ballerina's perfectly executed pirouette
Recent Examples on the Web Recalling her days as a dancer, a young woman, bone thin, took off a boot and performed an en demi-pointe pirouette. — David Guttenfelder, National Geographic, "The opioid crisis exposed in photos from a hard-hit neighborhood," 17 Dec. 2019 Watching all the pirouettes and arabesques will surely work up your appetite. — Leena Kim, Town & Country, "The Mark Hotel's Holiday Package May Be New York's Most Expensive at $250K," 15 Dec. 2019 They are known for spectacular jumps with half-turn pirouettes and splashes that can spray water on thrilled onlookers aboard the whale-watching boats. — Tom Stienstra, SFChronicle.com, "Whales, killer sharks steal some of U.S. Open’s thunder in Monterey Bay," 12 June 2019 The years of arabesques, pirouettes, and high-impact landings began to take their toll. — BostonGlobe.com, "How nutrition research is helping young gymnasts and figure skaters stay healthy - The Boston Globe," 28 Sep. 2019 One focuses on the delicate art of pirouettes, arabesque and croisé positions. — Rubén Rosario, Twin Cities, "Rubén Rosario: An old Midway warehouse mixes ballet, boxing and more," 15 Nov. 2019 One day, my 70-pound male bulldog did a pirouette into the bay. — Sarah Cook, al, "Meet the 2019 Women Who Shape the State honorees," 28 Oct. 2019 Furlong broke four tackles, even going through one with an almost ballet-like pirouette that is most irregular for a player of his imposing size. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Ireland reach RWC quarterfinals with 45-7 win over Samoa," 12 Oct. 2019 Cool on the ball despite not being the quickest, Xavi was a master at buying himself time in midfield, be that through pirouettes or little one-twos. — SI.com, "Pep Guardiola: The Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Man City Legend's All-Time Best XI," 13 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pirouette.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of pirouette

1706, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for pirouette

French, literally, teetotum

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Time Traveler for pirouette

Time Traveler

The first known use of pirouette was in 1706

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Statistics for pirouette

Last Updated

10 Jan 2020

Cite this Entry

“Pirouette.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pirouette. Accessed 26 January 2020.

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More Definitions for pirouette

pirouette

noun
How to pronounce pirouette (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of pirouette

: a full turn on the front of one foot in ballet

See the full definition for pirouette in the English Language Learners Dictionary

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More from Merriam-Webster on pirouette

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for pirouette

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with pirouette

Spanish Central: Translation of pirouette

Nglish: Translation of pirouette for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about pirouette

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