pirouette

American  

[pir-oo-et] / ˌpɪr uˈɛt /

noun

1. a whirling about on one foot or on the points of the toes, as in ballet dancing.

2. Dressage. a complete turn in which the horse uses its hind legs as a pivot.

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verb (used without object)

pirouetted, pirouetting

1. to perform a pirouette; whirl, as on the toes.

pirouette British  

/ ˌpɪrʊˈɛt /

noun

1. a body spin, esp in dancing, on the toes or the ball of the foot

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verb

1. (intr) to perform a pirouette

Etymology

Origin of pirouette

1700–10; < French: a whirl, top, feminine of Middle French pirouet, equivalent to pirou- (cognate with Italian pirolo, diminutive of piro peg) + -et -et

Example Sentences

Collins noticed her ballet pirouettes suffered during her luteal phase; Gomez saw women pushing through heated Pilates classes until they nearly passed out.

From Los Angeles Times

But a startup going from iPhone apps to consumer hardware wasn’t so much a pivot as it was a whole entire pirouette—followed by a couple of back flips.

From The Wall Street Journal

Every turn, sweep, and pirouette channels the elements—a dip births a bolt of lightning arcing down from the sky.

From Literature

From morning till night it continued: the choosing of outfits, the practicing of pirouettes, the making of to-do lists.

From Literature

In Hover mode, the joystick provides fine-grained yaw control, allowing the BlackFly to execute its surreal pirouette.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• angle
• change
• corner
• curve
• departure
• direction
• reversal
• round
• shift
• spin
• spiral
• swing
• trend
• twist
• wind