English Online Dictionary. What means dance? What does dance mean?
English
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /dɑːns/
- (Received Pronunciation, Cockney, Estuary, Jamaica) IPA(key): [dɑːns]
- (Received Pronunciation, Cockney, Estuary, Jamaica) IPA(key): [dɑːns]
- (General American) IPA(key): /dæns/
- (æ-tensing) IPA(key): [dɛəns], [deəns]
- (Northern England, Ireland) IPA(key): [dæns], [dans], [däns]
- (General Australian) IPA(key): [dæːns]
- (Cultivated Australian, New Zealand) IPA(key): [däːns], [dɐːns]
- (Indian English) IPA(key): [ɖɑːns]
- (æ-tensing) IPA(key): [dɛəns], [deəns]
- Rhymes: -ɑːns, -æns
Etymology 1
From Middle English dauncen, daunsen, a borrowing from Anglo-Norman dauncer, dancer (“to dance”) (compare Old French dancier), from Frankish *þansōn (“to draw, pull, stretch out, gesture”) (compare Old High German dansōn (“to draw, pull”)), from Proto-West Germanic *þansōn, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tens- (“to stretch, pull”). Replaced Old English sealtian (“to dance”) borrowed from Latin saltāre (“to leap, dance”). More at thin.
Alternative forms
- daunce (obsolete)
Noun
dance (countable and uncountable, plural dances)
- A sequence of rhythmic steps or movements usually performed to music, for pleasure or as a form of social interaction.
- A social gathering where dancing is the main activity.
- (uncountable) The art, profession, and study of dancing.
- (uncountable) A genre of modern music characterised by sampled beats, repetitive rhythms and few lyrics.
- A piece of music with a particular dance rhythm.
- (figurative) A battle of wits, especially one commonly fought between two rivals.
- So how much longer are we gonna do this dance?
- (figurative, dated) Any strenuous or difficult movement, action, or task.
- (apiology) A repetitive movement used in communication between worker honey bees.
- The death throes of a hanged person.
Hyponyms
- See also Thesaurus:dance
Derived terms
Translations
Verb
dance (third-person singular simple present dances, present participle dancing, simple past and past participle danced)
- (intransitive) To move with rhythmic steps or movements, especially in time to music.
- (intransitive) To leap or move lightly and rapidly.
- (transitive) To perform the steps to.
- (transitive) To cause to dance, or move nimbly or merrily about.
- (figurative, euphemistic) To make love or have sex.
- (apiology, of a worker honey bee) To make a repetitive movement in order to communicate to other worker honey bees.
- (figurative, euphemistic) To kick and convulse from the effects of being hanged.
Synonyms
- (move with rhythmic steps or movements): throw shapes
- (to engage in sexual intercourse): do the deed, get some, have sex; see also Thesaurus:copulate
Derived terms
Descendants
- → Arabic: دانس (dāns)
- → Scottish Gaelic: danns
- → Zulu: dansa
Translations
See also
- Appendix:Dances
Etymology 2
Related to dancy, dancetté, French danché.
Noun
dance (plural dances)
- (heraldry) A normally horizontal stripe called a fess that has been modified to zig-zag across the center of a coat of arms from dexter to sinister.
References
Further reading
- Dance on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
- dance on Wikibooks.Wikibooks
Anagrams
- Caden, Decan, acned, caned, decan
French
Etymology
Borrowed from English dance. Doublet of danse.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /dɛns/
Noun
dance f (uncountable)
- dance music
Galician
Verb
dance
- first-person singular present subjunctive of danzar
- third-person singular present subjunctive of danzar
Middle French
Etymology
From Old French dance.
Noun
dance f (plural dances)
- dance
Descendants
- French: danse
Old French
Etymology
From the verb dancier; see English dance, French danse.
Noun
dance f (oblique plural dances, nominative singular dance, nominative plural dances)
- dance
Portuguese
Verb
dance
- inflection of dançar:
- first/third-person singular present subjunctive
- third-person singular imperative
References
- “dance” in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa.
- “dance” in Dicionário infopédia da Língua Portuguesa. Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2023.
Spanish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): (Spain) /ˈdanθe/ [ˈd̪ãn̟.θe]
- IPA(key): (Latin America) /ˈdanse/ [ˈd̪ãn.se]
- (Spain) Rhymes: -anθe
- (Latin America) Rhymes: -anse
- Syllabification: dan‧ce
Verb
dance
- inflection of danzar:
- first/third-person singular present subjunctive
- third-person singular imperative