Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A full turn of the body on the point of the toe or the ball of the foot in ballet.
- intransitive verb To execute a pirouette.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To perform a pirouette; turn or whirl on one leg, or on the toes, as in dancing; advance or move along in a series of pirouettes, or short graceful turns, as a horse.
- noun In dancing, a rapid whirling on one leg or on the points of the toes, as performed by ballet-dancers.
- noun In the manège, a quick, short turn or whirl of a horse.
- noun In old reed-instruments of the oboe class, the globular cup or bowl in which the reed was inclosed and which served as a kind of mouthpiece.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun A whirling or turning on the toes in dancing.
- noun (Man.) The whirling about of a horse.
- intransitive verb To perform a pirouette; to whirl, like a dancer.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A
whirling orturning on thetoes indancing , primarily inballet . - noun The whirling about of a
horse . - verb intransitive To perform a pirouette; to
whirl on the toes, like adancer .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun (ballet) a rapid spin of the body (especially on the toes as in ballet)
- verb do a pirouette, usually as part of a dance
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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When a child at play stands on its head with its heels self-balanced in the air, making itself a pyramid instead of cutting a pirouette, that is, in the language of mothers and nurses, _far la
Rambles in the Islands of Corsica and Sardinia with Notices of their History, Antiquities, and Present Condition. Thomas Forester
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He twirled in a kind of pirouette to evade an oncoming attack, then jumped to perform a spin kick.
Superhero Nation: how to write superhero novels and comic books » The Chozen’s Review Forum 2009
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Harry doubled up with silent laughter as Crabbe did a kind of pirouette in midair, trying to see who had thrown it.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Rowling, J. K. 1999
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Widdecombe round in a style most often seen in primary school playgrounds; at one point grabbing hold of her ankle while she hopped round in a kind of pirouette, marabou dress trim bobbing, banana yellow leggings on display.
The Guardian World News Vicky Frost 2010
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Here, English borrowed a group of linked terms from French, the language in which ballet was pursued and from which it gained international status: jeté, pas de deux, pirouette, and of course ballet itself are all from French.
The English Is Coming! Leslie Dunton-Downer 2010
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Here, English borrowed a group of linked terms from French, the language in which ballet was pursued and from which it gained international status: jeté, pas de deux, pirouette, and of course ballet itself are all from French.
The English Is Coming! Leslie Dunton-Downer 2010
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I removed my cap to reveal a slipping hairstyle (going, going, almost gone) and did a pirouette, graceful as a walrus in ballerina tights.
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Honestly, can anyone pirouette from amusing all-night benders to bruising human-right politics with quick, drawn-comic aplomb quite like NMA.tv?
STATE DINNER: Here's the animated Obama/Hu Jintao party you DIDN'T see... Michael Cavna 2011
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Watching my Siamese and Tuxedo cats leap, pounce, and pirouette mid-air, I am suddenly smiling -- and, most importantly, not taking myself so seriously.
Brenda Peterson: What We Learn from Animals: How to Play Brenda Peterson 2011
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If they catch the wave skilfully, the skimboard is pivoted by their strong limbs and they pirouette in an air-mixed broth of water and sand, and triumphantly ride their steeds back to the beach.
Mexico's endless Pacific beach: sun, surf, sand, seafood and solitude 2009
Prolagus commented on the word pirouette
...Do something pretty while you can
Don't fall asleep
Skating a pirouette on ice is cool...
(We rule the school, by Belle and Sebastian)
September 5, 2008