choreography

American  

[kawr-ee-og-ruh-fee, kohr-] / ˌkɔr iˈɒg rə fi, ˌkoʊr- /

noun

1. the art of composing ballets and other dances and planning and arranging the movements, steps, and patterns of dancers.

2. the technique of representing the various movements in dancing by a system of notation.

3. the arrangement or manipulation of actions leading up to an event.

   the choreography of a surprise birthday party.

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choreography British  

/ ˌkɒrɪəˈɡræfɪk, ˌkɒrɪˈɒɡrəfɪ, kɒˈrɛɡrəfɪ, ˌkɒrəˈɡræfɪk /

noun

1. the composition of dance steps and sequences for ballet and stage dancing

2. the steps and sequences of a ballet or dance

3. the notation representing such steps

4. the art of dancing

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choreography Cultural  

1. The art of arranging dance movements for performance.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• choreographic
  adjective
• choreographer
  noun
• choreographically
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of choreography

1780–90; < Greek chore- (stem of choreía chorea ) + -o- + -graphy

Explanation

Use the noun choreography to describe the plan for how dancers will move on a stage during a show, play, or dance. You might particularly love the choreography in the movie West Side Story. You can use the word choreography to mean "dance" or "ballet," but its specific meaning is the notation a choreographer makes on paper as she plans out the complex movements and steps made by dancers. Choreography is particularly important in musical theater, ballet, opera, and dance recitals. The Greek roots of choreography are khoreia, "dance," and graphein, "to write."

Example Sentences

Philip Glass’ score for the critically acclaimed non-narrative 1982 documentary film “Koyaanisqatsi” plays as the dancers initiate the first moments of Hollander’s choreography in the open space.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 4, 2026

Larsson's dancers and their choreography have been key to hyping up her audiences on her current world tour, and on Saturday night they had tens of thousands vibing in Sunderland's Herrington Country Park.

From BBC • May 23, 2026

Elsewhere, Ms. Footer states with certainty that in his choreography for “Evergreen” Bradley was “baring his soul as an artist.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 20, 2026

Getting the pelican-frog duo to perform in unison was a feat of mechanical artistry for the team, not to mention the choreography needed by the puppeteer.

From Los Angeles Times • May 20, 2026

He had a natural eye for choreography, and everything he said sort of clicked for her.

From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon

Related Words

• dance