Basically Ballet Studio
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Movements of Dance:
Élancer - to Dart
Éntendre - to Stretch
Glisser - to Glide
Plier - to Bend
Relever - to Raise
Sauter - to Jump
Tourner - to Turn


Classical Positions of the Body:
Croisé devant
À la quatrième devant
Écarte
Effacé
À la seconde
Épaulé
À la quatrième derrière
Croisé derrière

Basic Ballet Dictionary

- A -
Adiago
Slow, sustained movement; leisurely
À terre
On the ground
Allegro
Brisk, lively movement
Arabesque
Basic pose with leg extended to the back or front of body
Assemblé
Assemble legs in the air
Attitude
Pose derived from the statue of Mercury
- B -
Balancé
Rocking step
Barre
Exercises are done holding onto a horizontal bar for support and balance
Battement
Beating
- C -
Cambré
Arched; upper body bends at the waist
Changement
Change of feet in 5th position
Chassé
Chased
Coupé
Cutting
Cou-de-pied
Neck of the foot
Croisé
Body position; crossed
- D -
Dégagé
Disengaged
Demi
Half
Derrière
Behind; back
Dessous
Under
Dessus
Over
Détourné
Turned aside
Devant
In front
Developpé
Developing; unfolding
- E -
Écarté
Body position; separated; thrown apart
Effacé
Body position; shaded
Echappé
Escaping
En bas
Arms in low position in front of body
En cloche
Like a bell
En croix
In the shape of a cross; barre exercises often follow this pattern.
En de hors
Outward; movement out and away from the body
En de dans
Inward; movement in and towards the body
En haut
Arms in a high position
En l'air
Off the ground; in the air
Epaulement
Shouldering
- F -
Fondu
Melting;sinking down
- G -
Glissade
Gliding
Grand battement
Large beat of the leg
Grande
Large
- M -
Manège
Circular; travel around the room in a circle
- P -
Pas de Basque
Step of the Basque; characteristic step of the national dances of the Basque people of north-central Spain
Pas de bourré
Boureé step
Pas de chat
Cat's step
Pas de cheval
Horse's step
Pas de valse
Waltz step
Passé
Passed
Piqué
Pricking; perching
Pirouette
Whirl; spin
Placement
Proper alignment of the body, arms, legs, hips
Plié
Bending
Port de bras
Carraige of the arms
- Q -
Quatrième
To the 4th position of the feet
- R -
Relevé
Raised; on pointe or demi-pointe
Retiré
Withdrawn
Révérance
Elaborate curtsey; small dance used to end ballet class
Rond de jambe
Round of the leg
- S -
Sauté
Jumping
Seconde
To the 2nd position of the feet
Sissone
Sissors; jump from two feet to one
Sous-sus
Under/over
- T -
Temps levé
Raised time; a jump or hop on one leg
Temps lié
Time linked; connected movement
Tendu
Stretched
Tombé
Falling
Tour jeté
Large jump over and turning (grande jeté dessus entournant)
Turn-out
Act of turning feet and legs out from the hip joints to a 90-degree position

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