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cotillion

 - 4 dictionary results

co⋅til⋅lion

  [kuh-til-yuhn, koh-]
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–noun
1. a formal ball given esp. for debutantes.
2. a lively French social dance originating in the 18th century, consisting of a variety of steps and figures and performed by couples.
3. any of various dances resembling the quadrille.
4. music arranged or played for these dances.
5. a formalized dance for a large number of people, in which a head couple leads the other dancers through elaborate and stately figures.
Origin:
1760–70; < F cotillon kind of dance, in OF: petticoat, equiv. to cote coat + -illon dim. suffix
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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co·til·lion also co·til·lon   (kō-tĭl'yən, kə-)   
n.  

  1. A formal ball, especially one at which young women are presented to society.

    1. A lively dance, originating in France in the 18th century, having varied, intricate patterns and steps.

    2. A quadrille.

    3. Music for these dances.


[French cotillon, from Old French, petticoat, diminutive of cote, coat; see coat.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

cotillion 
1766, from Fr., originally "petticoat," a double dim. of O.Fr. cote "skirt" (see coat), its application to "a dance" is obscure. Meaning "formal ball" is 1898, Amer.Eng.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia

cotillion

late 18th-century and 19th-century French court dance, popular also in England. A precursor of the quadrille, the cotillion was danced by four couples standing in a square set. The first and third, then the second and fourth, couples executed various series of geometric figures.

Learn more about cotillion with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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