cotillion
pronunciation
How to pronounce cotillion in British English:
UK [kə'tɪljən]
How to pronounce cotillion in American English:
US [koʊ'tɪljən]
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- Noun:
- a ball at which young ladies are presented to society
- a lively dance originating in France in the 18th century
Word Origin
- cotillion (n.)
- type of dance, 1766, from French cotillion (15c.), originally "petticoat," a double diminutive of Old French cote "skirt" (see coat (n.)); its application to a kind of dance arose in France and is considered obscure by some linguists, but there are lively turns in the dance that flash the petticoats. Meaning "formal ball" is 1898, American English, short for cotillion ball. French uses -on (from Latin -onem) to reinforce Latin nouns felt to need more emphatic power (as in poisson from Latin piscis). It also uses -on to form diminutives, often strengthened by the insertion of -ill-, as in the case of this word.
Example
- 1. I got punched out at my daughter 's cotillion .
- 2. I think I 'm not going to cotillion .
- 3. So do you have someone to take you to this cotillion ?
- 4. You haven 't talked to him since cotillion ?
- 5. You ruined my cotillion on purpose .