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:
A fresh cohort of famous faces – including actress Melanie Walters and former England footballer Shaun Wright-Phillips – also stepped onto the ballroom floor for the first time.
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
That’s exactly what the plaintiffs in the case with regard to the White House ballroom said.
From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2026
The ballroom is about to get a serious dose of star power.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 8, 2026
Initially the administration said the ballroom would cost $200 million, none of which would come from taxpayers’ money.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026
The Duchess’s china chair was positioned at the edge of the ballroom.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
Next door at the JW Marriott hotel, ballrooms are converted into press workspaces where celebrities and their teams milled about throughout the ceremony, reuniting cast-mates who haven't seen each other since they wrapped filming.
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
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
And 500 more White House ballrooms, based on the latest projection of $400 million for just one.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 25, 2026
His company pinpointed underground parking lots and hotel ballrooms as possible shelter areas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 13, 2026
Before I got fired for accusing Mr. White Manager of wearing a hairpiece, I used to clean the ballrooms at the Robert E. Lee Hotel.
From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
Definitions 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.
