zouk

American  

[zook] / zuk /

noun

1. a style of dance music that originated in Guadeloupe and Martinique, featuring Caribbean rhythms over a disco beat and played with electric guitars and synthesizers.

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zouk British  

/ zuːk /

noun

1. a style of dance music that combines African and Latin American rhythms and uses electronic instruments and modern studio technology

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Etymology

Origin of zouk

1985–90; apparently < Lesser Antillean Creole French; said to mean literally “place to dance, party”

Example Sentences

Fizzing with freedom and joy, it combines elements of chanson and French-Caribbean zouk, and looks set for a top 10 placing.

From BBC • May 9, 2025

Born to famed singer Lionel Benjamin in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Mikaben was a vocalist, composer and producer who spanned several genres, including Haitian kompa, the Antillean zouk, Jamaican reggae and hip-hop.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 18, 2022

For his 2012 album La Guinéenne, he embraced the golden age of west African music: lyrics in the Guinean Mandinka language accompanied by zouk, funk and reggae.

From The Guardian • May 22, 2020

Kuduro is an energetic trans-Atlantic clash of genres — including hip-hop, house, zouk and soca — and Pongo adds extra layers, blending them with current electronic styles and mixing in a contemporary pop flavor.

From New York Times • Feb. 17, 2020

Buffett is a folk, country, rock-'n'-roll, calypso, Latin, honky-tonk, Big Band, reggae, bebop, Tin Pan Alley, zouk, polka singer.

From Time Magazine Archive