calisthenics
Americannoun
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(used with a plural verb) gymnastic exercises designed to develop physical health and vigor, usually performed with little or no special apparatus.
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(used with a singular verb) the art, practice, or a session of such exercises.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of calisthenics
1840–50; cali- (variant of calli- ) + Greek sthén ( os ) strength + -ics
Explanation
Calisthenics is exercise, like jumping jacks or pull-ups, that people do to stay in shape or get in better shape. Doing calisthenics usually involves simple movements, like stretching, jumping, bending, and kicking, that don't involve a lot of equipment, if any. Kids in gym class do calisthenics, and calisthenics are helpful to many people, including athletes and people in the military. The push-up is a famous example of calisthenics. Those limber folks on cheerleading squads are masters of calisthenics. A little calisthenics can be helpful in anyone's everyday routine as a way to build endurance and stay healthy.
Vocabulary lists containing calisthenics
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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.
The calisthenics then continue in his office, where he often does more push-ups.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 9, 2025
You’re not going to have to resort to calisthenics to mash that avocado or that potato.
From Salon • Feb. 28, 2024
Instead, reading is like mental calisthenics for film, priming the mind for flights of imagination and empathy.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 16, 2024
The movie opens with him speed walking in a circle inside a spacious, elegantly shambolic apartment before pausing to execute some calisthenics.
From New York Times • Feb. 8, 2024
Far down the fields toward the river there was a wooden tower about ten feet high where the instructor had stood to direct the senior calisthenics.
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
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.
