quadrille

¹

[ kwo-dril, kwuh-, kuh- ]

noun

1. a square dance for four couples, consisting of five parts or movements, each complete in itself.
2. the music for such a dance.

quadrille

²

[ kwo-dril, kwuh-, kuh- ]

noun

1. a card game played by four persons.

quadrille

³

[ kwo-dril, kwuh-, kuh- ]

adjective

1. ruled in squares, as graph paper.

quadrille

¹

/ kwə-; kwɒˈdrɪl /

noun

1. a square dance of five or more figures for four or more couples
2. a piece of music for such a dance, alternating between simple duple and compound duple time

quadrille

²

/ kwə-; kwɒˈdrɪl /

noun

1. an old card game for four players

Word History and Origins

Origin of quadrille¹

First recorded in 1770–80; from French: “group of riders in a tournament; one of the four groups of dancers in a quadrille,” from Spanish cuadrilla “company, troop,” diminutive of cuadra “square, battle square,” from Latin quadra “side of a square; quadrant”

Origin of quadrille²

First recorded in 1720–30; an extended sense of quadrille ¹( def )

Origin of quadrille³

First recorded in 1855–60; from French quadrillé, from quadrille, a kind of diamond-shaped stitch in needlework, from Spanish cuadrillo “a small square”; quadrille ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of quadrille¹

C18: via French from Spanish cuadrilla, diminutive of cuadro square, from Latin quadra

Origin of quadrille²

C18: from French, from Spanish cuartillo, from cuarto fourth, from Latin quartus, influenced by quadrille ¹

Example Sentences

It seemed the entire chorus of The Nutcracker would hum a selection of Viennese waltzes and quadrilles and gallops.

From Literature

Many sections resemble contredanse or quadrille: ballroom arrangements of circles, lines, stars; dancers holding hands as they pass.

From New York Times

On the dance floor, guests ingest opium with lolling tongues, then variously pop their booties and walk a quadrille.

From The New Yorker

The room features holographic-type images of eight dancers in period dress performing a dance called a quadrille to the sounds of La Traviata.

From BBC

The image of the British aristocracy wading through muddy quadrilles is irresistible.

From New York Times