ballet

noun

bal·​let ba-ˈlā 

ˈba-ˌlā

1

a

: a theatrical art form using dancing, music, and scenery to convey a story, theme, or atmosphere

b

: dancing in which conventional poses and steps are combined with light flowing figures (such as leaps and turns)

2

: music for a ballet

3

: a group that performs ballets

4

: something likened to a ballet especially in complexity and precision of movement

Where else can you peek into the kitchen and see a quiet ballet of cooks, their entire attention focused on feeding a mere 65 people?

—Ruth Reichl

Rather, it is people and the daily ballet of urban life that make a city.

—Steven Earnest et al.

balletic

ba-ˈle-tik 

adjective

Examples of ballet in a Sentence

She does tap dancing and ballet.

We are going to a ballet tonight.

This is one of my favorite ballets.

Recent Examples on the Web

As a former figure skater for nearly 17 years and a ballet dancer at Balanchine’s School of Ballet, Wang said the body is everything to her and has been her life since the age of 6. —Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 17 Nov. 2025

Incorporate the Look into Your Holiday Gifting Sweet gifting ideas, such as ballet music boxes, gilded candleholders, and vintage gold picture frames, are resonating with Etsy shoppers now, says Johnson. —Patricia Shannon, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Nov. 2025

Semirechenskiy, a former ballet soloist with the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, used Nordic walking as part of his recovery from a spinal issue. —Melanie Radzicki McManus, CNN Money, 16 Nov. 2025

On the flip side, it can also be easily dressed up with a trench coat, chunky scarf, and ballet flats. —Emily Weaver, PEOPLE, 14 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, "theatrical presentation telling a story by means of dance and mime," borrowed from Italian balletto (also "short, well-done dance, semblance of a dance done for amusement"), from ballo "dance" (noun derivative of ballare "to dance," going back to Late Latin ballāre) + -etto, diminutive suffix — more at ball entry 3

First Known Use

1608, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing ballet

• corps de ballet
• water ballet

Rhymes for ballet

• airway
• allay
• archway
• array
• ashtray
• astray
• aue
• away
• belay
• beltway
• beret
• betray

Kids Definition

ballet

noun

bal·​let ˈbal-ā 

ba-ˈlā

1

a

: an art form that uses dancing to tell a story or express a theme

b

: dancing in which poses and steps are combined with leaps and turns

2

: a group that performs ballets

Etymology

from French ballet "ballet," derived from Italian ballare "to dance," from Latin ballare "to dance" — related to ball entry 3