hoofing

1 8.3

A dance where the feet make quick, loud beats like tap dancing

noun
/ˈhuːfɪŋ/

Jargon

: baile de pies

Mantan, as long as the hoofing is real, that I can do my thing, I can blacken up.

Examples

She is timing herself with the marching and hoofing of her bare feet.

Fiction book (1991)
In his next performance, the dancer showcased his incredible hoofing skills, captivating the audience with his footwork.
She figures once I can cook, then I'll get married, so no more hoofing, and then where is she?

This Could Be the Night (1957)
Hoofing is all right, but there's no future in it.

Swing Time (1936)
She practiced her hoofing every day to prepare for the upcoming tap dance competition.
The class focused on traditional hoofing techniques, emphasizing the rhythm and precision of each step.

Synonyms

step dancing

vshoofing

1 4.0

A kind of dance where exact foot movements make the rhythm

is especially associated with tap dancing rather than other dance traditions

Surface Forms

hoofing singular

hoofings plural

Morphology

hoofing = hoof (semi-transparent) = hoof + ing

Formed by 'hoof' + '-ing' in a regular way, but the noun's specialized dance meaning comes from informal/slang senses of 'to hoof' and may not be predictable for learners who only know 'hoof' as an animal foot.

Etymology

The word hoofing comes from hoof, the hard foot of animals, and from the old phrase to hoof meaning 'to move on your feet' or 'to dance'. That's why hoofing means a kind of dance that puts the feet first, especially in tap dancing where the footwork is most important.