perreo

American  

[per-ay-oh] / pɛrˈeɪ oʊ /

noun

perreos plural

1. a dance originating in Puerto Rican reggaeton culture, usually involving a dancer who moves their hips in a grinding or gyrating motion, sometimes against the hips of another person.

---

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• perreos
  plural

Example Sentences

While a majority of his peers were feeding from reggaeton’s roots in Puerto Rico, he decided to bring his paisa, or Medellín-born slang and style to breed a more personal brand of perreo.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 6, 2025

Katelina Eccleston, the founder of the history platform Reggaeton Con la Gata, said that the period between 2007 and 2011 heralded the sound of “perreo galáctico,” or galactic perreo.

From New York Times • Dec. 22, 2021

“While the mainstream is focused on actual pop, it gives the underground an opportunity to find a middle ground, potentially opening the door for the possibility of a second wave of perreo galáctico,” Eccleston said.

From New York Times • Dec. 22, 2021

“Hold on to the perreo like Ricky does to the government” read a third.

From The New Yorker • Jul. 26, 2019

Before word of Rosselló’s possible resignation had trickled in, the perreo, a reggaeton protest party, had been planned for seven that evening.

From The New Yorker • Jul. 26, 2019