barre

or bar

[ bahr ]

/ bɑr /

Save This Word!

noun Ballet.

a handrail placed at hip height, used by a dancer to maintain balance during practice.

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of barre

First recorded in 1945–50

Words nearby barre

Barras, barrator, barratry, Barrault, Barr body, barre, barré chord, barred, barred i, barred owl, barred spiral galaxy

Other definitions for barre (2 of 2)

barré

[ bah-rey ]

/ bɑˈreɪ /

noun

Textiles. a pattern of stripes or bands of color extending across the warp in woven and knitted fabrics.

Textiles. a streak in the filling direction when one or more picks are of a color different from that of adjacent picks.

Music. a technique of playing a chord on a stringed instrument by laying a finger across the strings at a particular fret, raising their pitch.

Origin of barré

<French: literally, barred, past participle of barrer, derivative of barrebar¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use barre in a sentence

The dancer—and Balanchine's wife and muse—broke barriers for Native Americans at the barre and graced stages all over the world.
Farewell to America’s Ballerina: Remembering Maria Tallchief|Nina Strochlic|April 13, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In 1999, I was a junior in high school, and a big story in the small town of Barre, Vermont, as a suspected school shooter.
My Strange Passage From Suspected School Shooter to Prom Queen|Gina Tron|January 28, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Like with so many “weird kids,” I left most of my nasty cycle behind when I left Barre to go to college.
My Strange Passage From Suspected School Shooter to Prom Queen|Gina Tron|January 28, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Its chapter on HPV vaccines examines 13 kinds of reported problems, from multiple sclerosis to Guillain-Barre syndrome.
HPV Vaccine's Tricky Ethics|Sharon Begley|September 14, 2011|DAILY BEAST

Colonel Barre, so noted in the British parliament as an opponent to the American war, died.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
They located near one of the forts, upon a spot of ground which is at present covered by the city of Wilkes-Barre.
The Myths of the North American Indians|Lewis Spence
Between Barre and Montmorency I met, in a hired carriage, four men in black, who saluted me smilingly.
The Confessions of J. J. Rousseau, Complete|Jean Jacques Rousseau
There are several good old houses here: but I must content myself with the mention of one only in the Rue de la Barre.
Some Account of Gothic Architecture in Spain|George Edmund Street
The last records of conditions in the Wilkes-Barre coal regions confirm the fact of labor scarcity.
Mobilizing Woman-Power|Harriot Stanton Blatch

British Dictionary definitions for barre (1 of 2)

barre

/ French (bar) /

noun

a rail at hip height used for ballet practice and leg exercises

Word Origin for barre

literally: bar

British Dictionary definitions for barre (2 of 2)

barré

/ (ˈbæreɪ) /

noun

the act of laying the index finger over some or all of the strings of a guitar, lute, or similar instrument, so that the pitch of each stopped string is simultaneously raisedCompare capo 1

the playing of chords in this manner

verb

to execute (chords) in this manner

adverb

by using the barré

Word Origin for barré

C19: from French, from barrer bar 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012