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• square dance
  square dance

  noun

  a dance by a set of four couples arranged in a square or in some set form.
• square-dance
  square-dance

  verb (used without object)

  to perform or participate in a square dance.

square dance

¹ American  

noun

1. a dance by a set of four couples arranged in a square or in some set form.

2. hoedown.

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square-dance ² American  

[skwair-dans, -dahns] / ˈskwɛərˌdæns, -ˌdɑns /

verb (used without object)

square-danced, square-dancing

1. to perform or participate in a square dance.

2. to participate in a hoedown.

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square dance British  

noun

1. any of various formation dances, such as a quadrille, in which the couples form squares

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verb

1. (intr) to perform such a dance

Other Word Forms

• square dancer
  noun
• square dancing
  noun
• square-dancer
  noun

Etymology

Origin of square dance¹

First recorded in 1865–70

Origin of square-dance²

First recorded in 1955–60

Example Sentences

You are doing a square dance with your children and the two-step with Uncle Sam.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 19, 2026

Then he led a large group in the “casino circle,” a sort of Latin square dance that originated in Havana in the 1950s.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 4, 2026

Square dancing: By my count, around 30 states have official dances, and around 25 of those states have chosen square dance, including Washington.

From Seattle Times • May 27, 2022

Emily DiPietro, of Stoneham, Mass., still remembers going to a father-daughter square dance more than two decades ago.

From New York Times • Jun. 17, 2017

“Looks like you had a blerry square dance up here. You certainly live up to your name, Disaster. You’ve disabled half the farm crew.”

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer