Cabriole

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A leap performed in ballet where the dancer arches one leg while the other kicks up to meet it in the air, showcasing elegance and skill
2. A movement in dance involving a jump that forms an arch with the legs, typically used to emphasize grace and agility
3. A ballet movement characterized by a jump in which the dancer creates an arch using the legs while one leg is raised to meet the other in mid-air, emphasizing skill and elegance

Etymology: The cabriole began as a goat. French "cabriole" meant "a goat's leap," and the word came into English from that French source, carrying the image of an animal bounding off the ground. The ballet step kept the idea of a leap while adding a precise shape: the dancer springs up and beats the legs together in the air, so the body seems to hover briefly before landing. The same image of a sudden, playful jump shaped the furniture term that shares the spelling, where a curved leg swells outward and then tapers inward in an S-like line, suggesting the bend of a springing animal's limb. Both senses grow from one picture of a lively leap, which is why a dance term and a chair leg can share a name.