contredanse
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con·tre·danse
also con·tre·dance or con·tra·dance or con·tra·danse (kŏn′trə-dăns′)n.
1. A folk dance performed in two lines with the partners facing each other.
2. The music for this dance.
[French, alteration (influenced by contre-, opposite) of English country-dance.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
contredanse
(ˈkɒntrəˌdɑːns) orcontradance
n
1. (Dancing) a courtly Continental version of the English country dance, similar to the quadrille
2. (Music, other) music written for or in the rhythm of this dance
[C19: from French, changed from English country dance; country altered to French contre (opposite) by folk etymology (because the dancers face each other)]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
con•tre•danse
(ˈkɒn trəˌdæns, -ˌdɑns; Fr. kɔ̃ˈtrədɑ̃s) ,n., pl. -dans•es (-ˌdæn sɪz, -ˌdɑn-; Fr. -ˈdɑ̃s)
1. a quadrille in which the dancers face each other.
2. music for such a dance.
[1795–1805; < French, =contre- counter- + danse dance, misrendering of E country -dance, by association with the characteristic arrangement of dancers in rows facing each other]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. |  contredanse - a type of folk dance in which couples are arranged in sets or face one another in a linefolk dance, folk dancing - a style of dancing that originated among ordinary people (not in the royal courts) longways, longways dance - country dancing performed with couples in two long lines facing each other square dance, square dancing - American country dancing in which couples form squares do-si-do - a square-dance figure; two dancers approach each other and circle back to back before returning to their original places promenade - a square dance figure; couples march counterclockwise in a circle sashay - a square dance figure; partners circle each other taking sideways steps swing - a square dance figure; a pair of dancers join hands and dance around a point between them landler - a moderately slow Austrian country dance in triple time; involves spinning and clapping |
| Verb | 1. | contredanse - perform a contradance trip the light fantastic, trip the light fantastic toe, dance - move in a pattern; usually to musical accompaniment; do or perform a dance; "My husband and I like to dance at home to the radio" |
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