gavotte

or ga·vot

[ guh-vot ]

noun

1. an old French dance in moderately quick quadruple meter.
2. a piece of music for, or in the rhythm of, this dance, often forming one of the movements in the classical suite, usually following the saraband.

gavotte

/ ɡəˈvɒt /

noun

1. an old formal dance in quadruple time
2. a piece of music composed for or in the rhythm of this dance

Word History and Origins

Origin of gavotte¹

1690–1700; < French < Provençal gavoto a mountaineer of Provence, a dance of such mountaineers, apparently derivative of gava bird's crop (probably < pre-Latin *gaba throat, crop, goiter), alluding to the prevalence of goiter among the mountaineers

Word History and Origins

Origin of gavotte¹

C17: from French, from Provençal gavoto, from gavot mountaineer, dweller in the Alps (where the dance originated), from gava goitre (widespread in the Alps), from Old Latin gaba (unattested) throat

Example Sentences

The music of the party scene, with its playful marches and stately gavotte, is pleasant and lovely, but the real joy of Tchaikovsky’s “Nutcracker” doesn’t begin until Clara goes to bed.

From Seattle Times

The dance was a gavotte, too spirited for talk.

From Literature

And he cast a ball scene in Act I as a gavotte, a popular dance form in the colonies.

From New York Times

But given the outright ugliness of this year’s presidential election, the bare-knuckled wrangling of Fiorello’s era seems more like a friendly gavotte conducted in kid gloves.

From New York Times

Inside, the building is an intricate gavotte of interlocked functions and juxtaposed ramps and balconies.

From New York Times