mambo

[ mahm-boh ]

noun,plural mam·bos.
  1. a fast ballroom dance of Caribbean origin, rhythmically similar to the rumba and cha-cha but having a more complex pattern of steps.

verb (used without object)
  1. to dance the mambo.

Origin of mambo

1
First recorded in 1935–40; from Caribbean Spanish (Cuba), from Haitian Creole manbo “ritual dance; Vodou priestess”; perhaps from Kongo màmbu, plural of diàmbu “ritual negotiation, message”

Words Nearby mambo

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How to use mambo in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for mambo

mambo

/ (ˈmæmbəʊ) /


nounplural -bos
  1. a modern Latin American dance, resembling the rumba, derived from the ritual dance of voodoo

  2. a voodoo priestess

verb-bos, -boing or -boed
  1. (intr) to perform this dance

Origin of mambo

1
American Spanish, probably from Haitian Creole: voodoo priestess

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