fox trot

¹

noun

1. a social dance, in quadruple meter, performed by couples, characterized by various combinations of slow and quick steps.

2. a pace, as of a horse, consisting of a series of short steps, as in slackening from a trot to a walk.

fox-trot

²

[foks-trot]

verb (used without object)

fox-trotted, fox-trotting 

1. to dance a fox trot.

Word History and Origins

Origin of fox trot¹

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75

Origin of fox trot²

First recorded in 1915–20