dance
gb/dˈæns/ us/dˈæns/
A1
English
~ 2500
Senses
0 senses
Verb
A1
action
1
Move rhythmically to music
To move your body and feet to music in a way that follows a rhythm.
Usage pattern:
to dance [to music/with someone]
Common mistake:
Some learners confuse 'dance' (the action) with 'a dance' (the event). For example, 'I go dance' instead of 'I go dancing' or 'I go to a dance'.
Synonyms
boogie (Informal term, often used for energetic or freestyle dancing.)
|
groove (Informal; emphasizes moving smoothly in rhythm with music.)
Antonyms
stand still (Opposite because it means not moving at all, especially when music is playing.)
Collocations
dance to music
|dance with a partner
|dance all night
|learn to dance
|dance in the street
Themes
arts
|entertainment
|daily life
|arts_entertainment
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- They danced together at their wedding.
- We danced to our favorite song in the living room.
- She loves to dance whenever she hears jazz music.
- The children danced around the bonfire.
- He danced with his daughter at the party.
Learner examples
- I like to dance to pop songs.
- We dance every Friday night.
- They dance together at school.
- She can dance very well.
- He dances when he is happy.
Noun
A2
entity
2
A social event with dancing
A party or event where people dance to music.
Usage pattern:
[someone] goes to a dance
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'dance' (event) with 'dancing' (activity), saying 'I like going to dancing' instead of 'I like going to dances'.
Synonyms
ball (More formal; usually refers to an elegant event with dancing.)
|
party (Less specific; may include dancing but not necessarily the main activity.)
Antonyms
meeting (Opposite in the sense of being a formal gathering without dancing.)
Collocations
school dance
|formal dance
|attend a dance
|organize a dance
Themes
arts
|entertainment
|social
|arts_entertainment
|relationships
Examples
- The high school is hosting a dance this Friday.
- We met at a community dance last summer.
- She wore her best dress to the dance.
- The annual charity dance raised thousands of dollars.
- They enjoyed the live band at the dance.
Learner examples
- I will go to the school dance.
- We had a big dance last week.
- My friends are at the dance now.
- She is planning a dance for her birthday.
- He met her at a dance.
Noun
A2
entity
3
A series of rhythmic movements to music
A way of moving your body to music, often with special steps or style.
Usage pattern:
[someone] performs a dance
Synonyms
routine (In performance contexts, refers to the planned sequence of movements.)
|
choreography (Technical term for the designed sequence of steps in a dance.)
Antonyms
stillness (Opposite as it means no movement at all.)
Collocations
traditional dance
|folk dance
|modern dance
|perform a dance
Themes
arts
|entertainment
|arts_entertainment
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- They performed a traditional folk dance on stage.
- The children learned a new dance for the recital.
- Ballet is a type of classical dance.
- She created an original dance for the competition.
- Hip-hop is his favorite style of dance.
Learner examples
- I know a fun dance.
- We learned a new dance in class.
- She did a beautiful dance.
- The teacher showed us a dance.
- He likes hip-hop dance.
Verb
informal
B2
action
4
Move quickly or lightly (figurative)
To move fast or lightly, not for dancing but for another reason like avoiding something.
Usage pattern:
to dance [around/away] from [something]
Synonyms
skip (Similar light movement but often more playful or childlike.)
|
dart (Quick movement, usually sudden and direct.)
Antonyms
plod (Opposite because it means moving slowly and heavily.)
Collocations
dance around the issue
|dance away from danger
Themes
movement
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- He danced out of the way just in time.
- The boxer danced around his opponent.
- She danced across the wet rocks without slipping.
Learner examples
- He danced away from the ball.
- The cat danced around the table.
- She danced past the chairs.
Grammar
Dictionary form
dance
IPA
GB/dˈæns/
US/dˈæns/
Syllables & stress
dance (1 syllable)
Stress on 1st syllable (dance)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: dance
- Plural: dance, dances
Verb
- Base: dance
- 3rd Person Singular: dances
- Present Participle: dancing
- Past: danced
Word family
Forms
dances
noun
dancing
verb
danced
verb
Core family
dancer
noun A2
Related words
danceable
adjective
Expressions
all-singing, all-dancing
1/ˈɔl sˈɪŋɪŋ | ˈɔl dˈænsɪŋ/
idiom
informal
Having many features or functions
Used to describe something that has many impressive features or can do many things.
Examples
- It's an all-singing, all-dancing smartphone with every feature you could want.
- They launched an all-singing, all-dancing website for their new product.
dance around the issue
1/dˈæns ɚˈaʊnd ðə ˈɪʃu/
idiom
Avoid talking directly about something important
To avoid talking about something important or difficult by not giving a clear answer.
Examples
- Stop dancing around the issue and tell me what happened.
- The politician kept dancing around the issue during the interview.
lead someone a merry dance
1/lˈid sˈʌmwˌʌn ə mˈɛɹi dˈæns/
idiom
Make things difficult for someone over time
To cause someone problems by making them do many things or deal with many difficulties over time.
Examples
- He's been leading me a merry dance with all his last-minute changes.
- The suspect led police a merry dance before being caught.
rain dance
1/ɹˈeɪn dˈæns/
fixed phrase
Ritual done to bring rain
A traditional ceremony done by some cultures to ask for rain.
Examples
- The tribe performed a rain dance during the drought.
- He joked that we should do a rain dance to help the garden.