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Dances | |
| allemande almain | a courtly baroque dance in which the arms are interlaced. |
| beguine | a dance of French West Indian origin. |
| bergamask bergomask | a rustic dance. |
| bogle | a rhythmic dance. |
| bolero | a Spanish dance with sudden pauses and sharp turns. Pl. BOLEROS. |
| boogey boogie boogy | to dance to rock music. |
| boston | a waltz-like dance. |
| bourree | an brisk French dance in triple time. |
| branle bransle brantle brawl | an old French dance or dance-tune. |
| breakdance breakdancing | an energetic form of dance to rock or disco. |
| cachucha | an Andalusian dance in three-four time, resembling the bolero. |
| cakewalk | a prancing stage dance with backward tilt; (verb) to do the cakewalk. |
| canary | a lively Renaissance courtly dance; (verb) to dance this. |
| cancan | a French dance. |
| cantico canticoy kantikoy | to dance as an act of worship. [Algonquin]. |
| capoeira capuera | a martial art and dance combination. |
| carioca | a variation of the SAMBA. |
| carmagnole | a popular song and round dance of the French Revolutionary period. |
| chaconne | a Spanish baroque dance in triple time. |
| charleston | a lively dance that involves kicking. |
| clogdance | a dance performed with clogs, the clatter keeping time to the music. |
| conga | a Latin American dance in which dancers are linked in a single file; (verb) to dance the conga. |
| contredanse | a folk dance in which two lines of couples face each other. |
| cooch | a sinuous dance. |
| coranto courant courante couranto | an old dance with a gliding step. |
| cotillion cotillon | an elaborate ballroom dance with frequent changes of partner. |
| cracovienne krakowiak | a lively Polish dance; the music for it. [From Cracow, a city in southern Poland). |
| csardas czardas | a Hungarian dance that increases in speed. Pl. CSARDASES/CZARDASES. The quick movement is called a FRIS or FRISKA, the slow movement a LASSU. |
| fading | an old Irish dance. |
| fado | a type of Portugese folk-song or dance. [Port. fado, fate]. Pl. FADOS. |
| fandango | a lively Spanish dance performed by a couple. Pl. FANDANGOS or FANDANGOES. |
| farandole | a lively Provençal dance in which men and women hold hands. |
| farruca | a gypsy dance with sudden tempo and mood changes. |
| flamenco | a Spanish dance style. Pl. FLAMENCOS. |
| forlana furlana | a Venetian dance in 6-4 time. |
| foxtrot | a ballroom dance to syncopated music; (verb) to dance the foxtrot. |
| fris friska | the quick movement of a CZARDAS. |
| frug | a vigorous dance performed to pop music, popularized in the 1960s; (verb) to perform this dance. |
| galliard | a sprightly Renaissance and Baroque dance. |
| gallopade galopade | a lively ballroom dance in 2/4 time; a piece of music for this dance. GALLOPADE, but not GALOPADE, can be used as a verb: to dance a gallopade. |
| galop | a lively double-time dance; (verb) to dance this: GALOPPING or GALOPING, GALOPPED or GALOPED. |
| gavot gavotte | a dance, somewhat like a country-dance, originally a dance of the Gavots, people of the French Upper Alps. |
| german | (US) an elaborate dance. |
| giga gigue | a lively Italian dance. Pl. of GIGA is GIGAS, GIGHE. |
| gopak | a high-leaping folk-dance from the Ukraine. |
| habanera | a slow and seductive Cuban dance. |
| haka | a ceremonial Maori war-dance. |
| halling | a Norwegian country dance. |
| hey | a winding country dance; (verb) to dance this. |
| hoedown | a country dance. |
| hoolachan hoolican | a Highland reel, esp. the reel of Tulloch. |
| hora horah | an Israeli dance. |
| hornpipe | a lively British folk dance. |
| hula | a sinuous Polynesian dance with rhythmic hip movements. |
| jitterbug | a jazz dance featuring vigorous acrobatic feats; (verb) to dance this. |
| jive | to dance to jazz or swing music. |
| joncanoe junkanoo | a boisterous West Indian dance. |
| jota | a Spanish dance in triple time. |
| juba | a Negro rustic dance. |
| kathak | a dance of N. India. |
| kazachok | a Russian folk dance. Pl. KAZACHKI. |
| kazatski | a Russian folk dance. Pl. KAZATSKIS. |
| kazatsky | a Russian folk dance. Pl. KAZATSKIES. |
| kazatzka | a Russian folk dance. Pl. KAZATZKAS. |
| kolo | a Serbian folk-dance. [Serbo-Croat kolo, wheel]. Pl. KOLOS. |
| krakowiak | see CRACOVIENNE. |
| lambada | a rhythmic energetic Latin-American dance. |
| lanciers | a French dance. N.B. there is no singular LANCIER*. |
| lassu | the slow movement of a CSARDAS. |
| landler | a S. German dance, like a slow waltz (the a has an umlaut). |
| lavolt lavolta(# | a lively dance for couples in 3/4 time, in which each partner lifts the other clear of the ground in turn; (verb) to do this dance. |
| legong | a Balinese dance. |
| lindy | a dance closely resembling the jitterbug. |
| loure | an old slow dance in 6-4 time. [Fr. bagpipe]. |
| malaguena | a Spanish dance performed by a couple, similar to the FANDANGO. |
| mambo | a Cuban ballroom dance resembling the rumba or cha-cha; Voodoo priestess; (verb) to dance the mambo. Pl. MAMBOS or MAMBOES. |
| marinera | a Peruvian folk-dance danced in pairs. |
| matachin | a masked sword-dancer; the sword-dance itself. Pl. MATACHINI. |
| matachina | a female MATACHIN, sword-dancer. |
| maxixe | a Brazilian ballroom dance resembling the two-step. |
| mazourka mazurka | a Polish folk dance in moderate triple measure. [Polish mazurka, woman of the province Mazovia]. |
| merengue | a Caribbean ballroom dance in which feet are frequently dragged. |
| minuet | a slow and stately Baroque dance in 3/4 time. |
| morris morrice | an English folk dance in which story is enacted by costumed dancers; MORRIS can be used as a verb: to dance the morris. |
| mosh+ | a style of energetic sinuous dancing; (verb) to dance in this way. |
| mosher+ | one who MOSHES. |
| moshing | a style of energetic sinuous dancing: MOSHINGS. |
| nach nautch nauch+ | an entertainment in India consisting chiefly of dancing by professional dancing girls. |
| nondance | something that is not a dance. |
| nondancer | one who does not dance. |
| outdance | to surpass in dancing. |
| pantalon pantalone | a movement in a quadrille. |
| pasodoble+ | a fast modern dance. |
| paspy passepied | a Breton dance resembling a quick minuet. |
| passacaglia | an old slow Italian or Spanish dance; variations on a theme over a continuously repeated ground bass. |
| passamezzo | an old dance, a PAVAN in quick time. |
| pericon | an Argentinan folk-dance performed by couples dancing in a ring. Pl. PERICONES. |
| petronella | a Scottish country dance. |
| pigeonwing | a caper or leap in dancing, jumping and clapping feet together. |
| polk | to dance a polka. |
| polka | a Bohemian dance or the tune for it; (verb) to dance this. [Perhaps Czech pulka half-step; or from Polish polka a Polish woman]. |
| polonaise | a stately Polish dance of moderate tempo. |
| polonie | a child's polonaise, a stately Polish dance of moderate tempo. |
| pyrrhic | an ancient Greek war-dance; also a Greek poetic measure. |
| quadrille | a square dance for four couples; (verb) to dance the quadrille. A QUADRILLE has movements including a PANTALON or PANTALONE and a TRENISE. |
| quickstep | a fast march-like dance. |
| redowa | a Bohemian dance. [Czech rejdovák, f. rejdovat turn or whirl round]. |
| reel | a lively dance of the Scottish Highlands. |
| rhumba rumba | a kind of dance; (verb) to dance the rhumba. |
| rigadoon rigaudon | a lively Baroque period dance. |
| romaika | a modern Greek dance. [Mod. Gr. Rhomaikos, Roman]. |
| ronggeng | a Malaysian dancing-girl; a kind of Malysian dancing, often with singing. |
| roundel roundle | a ring-dance. |
| salsa | a rhythmic Latin-American big-band dance music; a dance performed to this; (verb) to do such a dance. [Sp. salsa, sauce]. |
| saltarello | a lively Italian dance. Pl. SALTARELLOS or SALTARELLI. |
| samba | a Brazilian dance; (verb) to dance the samba. |
| saraband sarabande | a stately court dance of the 17th and 18th centuries, resembling the minuet. [Sp. zarabanda]. |
| sardana | a Catalan dance in a ring formation. |
| schottische | an old polka-like round dance. |
| seguidilla | a Spanish folk dance. |
| shimmy | a jazz dance featuring rapid shaking of the body; (verb) to dance the shimmy. |
| siciliana siciliano | a Sicilian dance, resembling the pastorale, set to a rather slow and graceful melody in 12-8 or 6-8 measure; also, the music to the dance. Pl. of SICILIANA is SICILIANE; of SICILIANO is SICILIANOS. |
| skank | to dance to reggae music, lifting the knees in a rapid jerky movement. |
| skanker+ | one who SKANKS, dances to reggae music. |
| slamdance+ | to dance aggressively, bumping into other people. |
| stepdancer | one who does a step dance. |
| stepdancing | dancing involving an effective display of steps by an individual dancer. N.B. there is no STEPDANCE* (it is two words), but there is STEPDANCER. |
| stomp | a jazz dance featuring heavy stamping of the feet. |
| strathspey | a reel-like Scottish dance of moderate tempo. |
| tango | a kind of dance; (verb) to dance the tango. |
| tangolike+ | like a TANGO. |
| tarantella | a lively, whirling S. Italian dance once thought to be caused by tarantism. |
| tordion turdion | a Renaissance dance similar to but slower than a GALLIARD. |
| trenise | the fourth movement of a QUADRILLE. |
| tripudium | an ancient Roman religious dance in triple time. Pl. TRIPUDIA or TRIPUDIUMS. |
| valeta veleta | a kind of dance. [Sp. veleta, weather-cock]. |
| valse | a waltz; (verb) to waltz. |
| varsovienne | a polka-like Polish dance. |
| villanella | an old rustic dance, accompanied with singing. Pl. VILLANELLE (which a a verse form is also a singular in its own right, with pl. VILLANELLES). |
| vogue | to perform to pop music a stylized dance: VOGUING/VOGUEING. |
| volta | same as LAVOLTA, but cannot be used as verb. |
| waltz | a ballroom dance in triple time in which couples spin around as they progress round the room; (verb) to dance this. |
| waltzlike+ | like a WALTZ. |
| zapateado | a Latin-American dance with rhythmic tapping of the feet. Pl. ZAPATEADOS. |
| zapateo | a Spanish dance. Pl. ZAPATEOS. |
| ziganka | a Russian country dance. |