gavotte

noun

ga·​votte gə-ˈvät How to pronounce gavotte (audio)
1
: a dance of French peasant origin marked by the raising rather than sliding of the feet
2
: a tune for the gavotte in moderately quick ⁴/₄ time
gavotte intransitive verb

Examples of gavotte in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The kids play the Gossec gavotte over and over and over. Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 7 Nov. 2022 With all that happened, we're supposed to dance a merry gavotte because some diggers found a proto-clucker with a duck caboose? Star Tribune, 24 Dec. 2020 Listen out for the slow middle movement without a continuo, solemn and still, set against a charming gavotte to wrap up. E.c., The Economist, 21 May 2020 Through gavottes, tambourins, and menuets, dance pieces for those operas, the Baroque orchestra was in its full splendor. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 14 June 2019

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gavotte.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

French, from Middle French, from Old Occitan gavato, from gavot Alpine dweller

First Known Use

1696, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of gavotte was in 1696

Dictionary Entries Near gavotte

Cite this Entry

“Gavotte.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gavotte. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

gavotte

noun
ga·​votte gə-ˈvät How to pronounce gavotte (audio)
: a French peasant dance in moderately quick 4/4 time
gavotte verb

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