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ballet

Pronunciation: /ˈbaleɪ, -li/
Translate ballet | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of ballet

noun

[mass noun]
  • an artistic dance form performed to music, using precise and highly formalized set steps and gestures. Classical ballet, which originated in Renaissance Italy and established its present form during the 19th century, is characterized by light, graceful movements and the use of pointe shoes with reinforced toes.
  • [count noun] a creative work or performance of ballet, or the music written for it.
  • [treated as singular or plural] a group of dancers who regularly perform ballets:the Bolshoi Ballet

Origin:

mid 17th century: from French, from Italian balletto, diminutive of ballo 'a dance', from late Latin ballare 'to dance' (see ball2)

ballet in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of ballet in the US English dictionary
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