Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A stately, marchlike Polish dance, primarily a promenade by couples.
- n. Music for or based on the traditional rhythm of this dance, having triple meter.
- n. A woman's dress of the 18th century, having a fitted bodice and draped cutaway skirt, worn over an elaborate underskirt.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A light open gown looped up at the sides, showing the front of an elaborate petticoat, and longer behind, worn toward the close of the eighteenth century; also, a similar but plainer gown, not so much drawn back, and draped more simply, worn at the present time.
- n. A kind of overcoat, short and usually faced and bordered with fur, worn by men who affected a semi-military dress during the first quarter of the nineteenth century.
- n. A Polish dance, consisting mainly of a march or promenade of the dancers in procession.
- n. Music for such a promenade, or in its peculiar rhythm, which is triple and stately, with a characteristic division of the first beat of the measures, and a capricious ending of the phrases on the last beat. The origin of the form is uncertain. It was first described by Mattheson in 1739, and it has since been frequently nsed by various instrumental composers. It received the most elaborate and original treatment from Chopin, many of whose finest works are in this form. The rhythm of the bolero is very similar to that of the polonaise. Also called
polacca .
Wiktionary
- n. A stately Polish dance in triple time and moderate tempo.
- n. Music for this dance.
- n. A woman's dress having a tight bodice and a skirt divided to show a coloured underskirt.
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Of or pertaining to the Poles, or to Poland.
- n. The Polish language.
- n. An article of dress for women, consisting of a body and an outer skirt in one piece.
- n. (Mus.) A stately Polish dance tune, in 3-4 measure, beginning always on the beat with a quaver followed by a crotchet, and closing on the beat after a strong accent on the second beat; also, a dance adapted to such music; a polacca.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a woman's dress with a tight bodice and an overskirt drawn back to reveal a colorful underskirt
Etymologies
- From the French polonaise (Polish). (Wiktionary)
- French, from feminine of polonais, Polish, from Medieval Latin Polōnia, Poland. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“The first wore a white silk, called a polonaise, forming a flowing robe, open to the waist; the pink sash was six inches wide, and filled with spangles; the shoes and stockings were also spangled, and, above all, arose a towering head-dress, filled with a profusion of pearls and jewels; the veil was spangled, and edged with silver lace.”
“In the olden times the polonaise was a kind of solemn ceremony.”
“Ax built this recital around the theme of fantasy, beginning with Chopin's Polonaise-Fantaisie in A flat, Op 61, in which the polonaise is a firmly focused introduction to the meandering that follows.”
“When, therefore, the signal for the "polonaise" resounded through the saloons, and the guests of all ranks took part in that measured promenade, which on occasions of this kind has all the importance of a national dance, the mingled costumes, the sweeping robes adorned with lace, and uniforms covered with orders, presented a scene of dazzling splendor, lighted by hundreds of lusters multiplied tenfold by the numerous mirrors adorning the walls.”
“The ball consisted of nothing but repetitions of the dance called "polonaise," in which I had for my first partner young Prince Bariatinski, with whom I went the round of the room and afterward took a seat on the bench to watch all the dancers.”
“The "polonaise" was often danced, too, and was much less fatiguing, for this dance is nothing more than a procession in which you quietly walk two by two.”
“I thought it was called polonaise, "he answered humbly.”
“polonaise' of plain cloth, a little toque on her head trimmed with a pheasant's wing, a bunch of violets in her bosom, hastening along the”
“The forthright, hip-gyrating dance for the array of disco-dancing and drink-swigging Brits is set tightly on the polonaise Tchaikovsky called a "dance with goblets," albeit, in the original, wine-filled ones toasting that libretto's prince.”
“Because it is similar to Alsace's legendary and sauerkrauty choucroute garnie, bigos is often referred to by French cooks as "choucroute a la polonaise" despite the Poles proclaiming their version superior in every way.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘polonaise’.
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MUSIC - dance styles
A list generated by Phrontistery
http://phrontistery.info/dance.html
which I wanted to have along with my own lists on Wordnikallemande, beguine, bergamask, bolero, bossa-nova, boston, bourrée, bransle, buck-and-wing, cabriole, cakewalk, canary and 93 more...
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phrontistery - p
from phrontistery.info
pustule, purulence, pushful, purser, purpureal, putative, purpure, purpresture, purloin, purline, purlieu, purlicue and 1766 more...
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Redundancing
The Moves. Do~do~ditty!
tango, bolero, cha cha, foxtrot, foxtantino, hip hop, hustle, jive, merengue, two step, paso doble, quickstep and 219 more...
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Historical Costume Box
This is just sort of my "unsorted pit" of costumes to be organized later. It's a really broad topic, so right now, anything goes! Thanks for the contributions!
baldric, bliaut, coif, cote-hardie, farthingale, houppelande, partlet, tabard, kirtle, wimple, buskin, greatcoat and 33 more...
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the beat & the break
words relating to rhythm
syncope, ascensional, sonant, syncopate, assonance, caesura, prosody, modulation, cadence, rhythm, interval, clitter and 34 more...
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Baby, Work Out!
Names of popular or once dances.
hully gully, slauson, twist, jitterbug, stroll, pony, mashed potato, swim, jerk, watusi, boogaloo, worm and 54 more...
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azd's Words
adamantine, abatial, ablate, ablative, abrogate, accretive, acromegaly, acrostic, actinism, actinic, acuity, adduce and 968 more...
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French words in German language
words and phrases with french background commonly used in the german language, so-called "Gallizismen"
trottoir, paravent, rayon, perron, fauteuil, garage, arrangement, etablissement, portemonnaie, parterre, coupé, voliere and 123 more...
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One Left Footer's Manifesto
I was tragically born with an extra left foot. If I weren't so debilitated, this would be my to-do list.
cha cha, tango, waltz, fox trot, limbo, square dance, line dance, mosh, breakdance, pop and lock, robot, salsa and 98 more...
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Musical words
nocturne, flat, sharp, waltz, etude, opera, soprano, alto, tenor, bass, cello, flute and 131 more...
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Beautiful Music
a cappella, accelerando, accompagnato, adagio, ad libitum, agitato, aleatory, alla breve, allegro, allemande, alto, andante and 548 more...
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Greg's Words
frippet, furtive, gimcrack, indefatigable, vicissitudes, pedant, ziggurat, susurrus, sub rosa, rodomontade, interregnum, abscise and 168 more...
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Dance Magic Dance
Styles of dance
ballet, tango, waltz, salsa, polka, swing, charleston, foxtrot, jitterbug, tap, quickstep, mambo and 101 more...
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Fabrics
Woven, knit and tatted fabrics. Other kinds of cloth, such as tapa and chamois are not included.
shikii, shantung, cotton, linen, tweed, wool, velour, velvet, velveteen, gabardine, chenille, silk and 550 more...
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French Historic Costume Guide
Primarily from the late Middle-ages up to the 18th century
guepes and papillons, coiffure, polonaise, cravat, panniers, fontange, craquele, aigrette, chaperon, coquard, escoffion, bretelles and 11 more...
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Dresses!
maxi, mini, gown, A-line, sheath, cocktail, jumper, sundress, strapless, mermaid, little black dress, shift and 35 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for polonaise.
sionnach It's hard to imagine dancing to Chopin's "Military Polonaise", somehow. Mar 20, 2008
yarb E.g. in Tchaikovsky's 'Eugene Onegin'. Mar 20, 2008
treeseed The polonaise (Polish: polonez, chodzony; Italian: polacca) is a rather slow dance of Polish origin, in 3/4 time. Its name is French for "Polish." The notation alla polacca on a score indicates that the piece should be played with the rhythm and character of a polonaise (e.g., the rondo in Beethoven's Triple Concerto op. 56 has this instruction).
Before Frédéric Chopin, the polonaise had a rhythm quite close to that of the Swedish semiquaver or sixteenth-note polska, and the two dances have a common origin. From Chopin onward, the polonaise developed a very solemn style, and has in that version become very popular in the classical music of several countries.
_Wikipedia Feb 25, 2008