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pas de chat

American  
[pahduh sha] / pɑdə ˈʃa /

noun

Ballet.
pas de chat plural
  1. a jump of one foot over the other.


pas de chat British  
/ pɑdʃa /

noun

  1. ballet a catlike leap

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of pas de chat

1910–15; < French: cat step

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.

See Examples For:

I can still see the Puff dancer, performing pas de chat across the stage—this huge guy, in shorts, doing these dainty little hops.

From The New Yorker Jun. 30, 2014

But ballet steps — pas de chat, cabrioles, grands fouettés sautés and more — abound; so do Cunningham uses of legs and torso.

From New York Times Feb. 5, 2014

When Ms. Tuttle is lifted, her legs and feet transform pas de chat and other steps into larger trajectories that have a revelatory force.

From New York Times Mar. 10, 2012

It had a corps de ballet drilled down to the last pas de chat, an ensemble built on the theory that it is as important to have a well-coordinated team as a great star.

From Time Magazine Archive

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