💃 To dance with hips 💃 A hip dance

belly dance

3.4

A Middle Eastern dance with smooth hip and stomach movements

noun
/ˈbɛli dæns/

: danza del vientre

In her class, she learned the elegant art of belly dance, which emphasizes fluid movements of the hips and torso.

Examples

The festival featured a stunning belly dance performed by international artists.
Many people take belly dance classes for exercise and cultural appreciation.
She has been learning to belly dance for three years and now performs in local shows.
The belly dance performance was captivating.
The festival featured a stunning belly dance show.
The festival featured a stunning display of belly dance performances that captivated the audience with their rhythm and grace.
After years of practice, she finally mastered the complex techniques of belly dance, showcasing her skills at a local cultural event.

Synonyms

belly dancing

vsbelly dance

1 3.7

A dance from the Middle East where a dancer moves the hips and stomach in soft flowing movements

is the same dance described as a form rather than as an activity

danse du ventre

vsbelly dance

9.9

A Middle Eastern dance with hip and stomach movements

is the common English name rather than the French term

Surface Forms

belly dance singular

belly dances plural

Morphology

belly + dance

The meaning 'to perform a dance characterized by sinuous movements of the hips and abdomen' is directly and compositionally derived from 'belly' (abdomen) + 'dance' (to move rhythmically). This is a straightforward descriptive compound found across languages (e.g., French 'danse du ventre'), so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would very likely infer the meaning.

Etymology

Belly dance comes from traditional Middle Eastern dances where dancers move their belly and hips in smooth, rolling ways. That's why the noun means 'a dance that focuses on the hips and abdomen'.