ballroom
Americannoun
-
ballrooms
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of ballroom
Explanation
A ballroom is a room that has enough space for many people to dance. Traditionally, a ballroom has either a hardwood or marble floor. Most private houses are built without ballrooms these days, but it was once common for a grand home or mansion to include a special room for throwing dance parties. These ballrooms were large, with high ceilings, and could accommodate a live band and many dancers. Ballroom dancing was originally a formal, social dance form that only happened in ballrooms. The word comes from ball, or party, with the Latin root ballare, "to dance."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Trump has raced through several projects in the nation’s capital, including the building of a White House ballroom.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
The US president has sought to cement his legacy through changes to the White House, including gilded gold leaf accents in the Oval Office, demolition of the East Wing and construction of a ballroom.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
US President Donald Trump took Chinese President Xi Jinping and other state dinner guests on a tour of the construction site of his new ballroom, the White House said Friday.
From Barron's ● Sep. 25, 2026
She’s from Japan, he’s from Mexico, their native languages intertwining at home, although you could argue their shared tongue is actually ballroom.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
We’d attend a formal banquet in the ballroom, eating with forks and knives coated in gold.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
He told me that during his childhood, Eid prayers were sometimes held in hotel ballrooms because mosques were too few and too small.
From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2026
So, they are transforming spaces on-site that sometimes sit empty—like ballrooms and conference rooms—into spaces for members to gather.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 24, 2026
Demos, presentations and meetings will take place in a massive convention center as well as ballrooms and suites throughout the city.
From Barron's ● Jan. 3, 2026
But who needs lighting, heat or their health when there are ballrooms to build?
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2025
We pass grand ballrooms and glass solariums and ornate parlors.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
