two-step
Americannoun
-
a ballroom dance in duple meter, marked by sliding steps.
-
a piece of music for, or in the rhythm of, this dance.
verb (used without object)
noun
-
an old-time dance in duple time
-
a piece of music composed for or in the rhythm of such a dance
Etymology
Origin of two-step
First recorded in 1890–95
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:
On Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio provided insight into the administration’s hope for a two-step negotiation that, eventually, ends with severe caps on Iran’s nuclear advancements.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
A month later, with the deadline for placing items on the Nov. 3 ballot fast approaching, Soto-Martínez introduced a motion calling for a two-step process for expanding voting rights.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 4, 2026
You are doing a square dance with your children and the two-step with Uncle Sam.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 19, 2026
Formula 1 has agreed a two-step plan to change engine design in response to criticism of this year's new rules.
From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2026
After a particularly lively two-step, I felt a pat on my shoulder.
From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson
She two-stepped, line danced and dramatically collapsed to the floor - the set was jam-packed.
From BBC ● May 24, 2026
He has slowly and patiently two-stepped his way to everything he ever wanted.
From Salon ● Oct. 15, 2025
Norman Dow helped the Bruins beat USC in 1966, John Barnes came out of nowhere to top the Trojans in 1992 and Jerry Neuheisel two-stepped all over Texas in 2014.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 20, 2020
The cordial crowd two-stepped under the stars, Lone Star-style.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 26, 2016
Magdalys laughed as Two Step hugged her and then two-stepped past to the ptero.
From "Dactyl Hill Squad" by Daniel José Older
The strangest song Jepsen has ever written, according to Jepsen: “Store,” the improbably exuberant bop about grocery shopping that she sang at the Troubadour while two-stepping down an imaginary frozen foods aisle.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2025
The ruling could leave two-stepping firms caught between the conflicting demands of bankruptcy courts and the appeals courts that are likely to hear more challenges to the tactic.
From Reuters ● Feb. 2, 2023
"I can't fool myself, I don't want nobody else to ever love me," Luther sang, my dad two-stepping and spinning between the sink and stove.
From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2021
Maybe that stealth hum coursing beneath Rihanna’s most seductive melodies is actually the sound of Samsung, one of the singer’s biggest sponsors, data-mining our lives while we Snapchat ourselves two-stepping to “Pour It Up.”
From Washington Post ● Mar. 23, 2016
You won't be two-stepping down the aisle at St. Gudule, but you'll agree that it's a very pretty party.
From Castle Craneycrow by George Barr McCutcheon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
