samba
Americannoun
plural
sambasverb (used without object)
noun
-
a lively modern ballroom dance from Brazil in bouncy duple time
-
a piece of music composed for or in the rhythm of this dance
verb
Etymology
Origin of samba
First recorded in 1885; from Portuguese, of African origin, possibly Kongo semba, the name of a dance
Vocabulary lists containing samba
South America - Middle School
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South America - Introductory
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South America - High School
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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.
"The samba says it: there are children of the poor becoming doctors, and me, a child of the poor, becoming a carnival designer," he told Reuters.
From BBC • Feb. 18, 2026
One of the composers of the samba told local media that Lula had cried when Academicos leaders travelled to Brasilia last year to play the song for him.
From Barron's • Feb. 3, 2026
Watching the rehearsal, Adriano Santos, a 43-year-old social worker from the Rocinha favela, said the samba school was "being brave, innovative."
From Barron's • Feb. 3, 2026
During Carnival in February, Florianópolis has its own samba schools and parades.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 6, 2025
At the Pacific Rim Championships in April 2016, I debuted a brand-new, upgraded floor routine set to fast, upbeat samba music that I thought would go over well with the crowd in Rio.
From "Courage to Soar" by Simone Biles
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.
