Meanings of Selected Ballet Steps
14 August 2015
Ballet consists of 7 basic movements:
- Plier (to bend)
- Étendre (to stretch)
- Relever (to rise)
- Glisser (to slide or glide)
- Sauter (to jump)
- Élancer (to dart)
- Tourner (to turn)
At the Barre
Terminology | Meaning | Link |
---|---|---|
Plie | Bend | How to execute Plie correctly |
Tendu | Stretch | How to execute Tendu correctly |
Jete | Throw | |
Rond de Jambe a Terre | Circling of the Leg on the Floor | |
Frappe | Strike | |
Fondu | Melt | |
Petit Battement | Small Beating | |
Adagio | At ease, Leisure | |
Rond de Jambe en L’air | Circling of the Leg in the Air | |
Grand Battement | Big Beating | |
A la Seconde | To the Side | |
Changer | Change / Switch | |
Devant | Front / In Front | |
En Avant | Forward / To The Front | |
Derriere | Back / Behind | |
En Arriere | Backward / To The Back | |
En Croix | In the Shape of a Cross | |
En Dehors | Outwards, Away from Supporting Leg | |
En Dedans | Inwards, Towards Supporting Leg |
In the Centre
Terminology | Meaning |
---|---|
Allegro | Brisk, Lively Movement |
Brise | Broken / Breeze |
Cambre | Arched |
Chaine | Chain |
Changement de pied | Change of Foot |
Ciseaux | Scissors |
Cou de Pied | Neck of the Foot, meaning Ankle |
Coupe | Cutting |
Croise | Crossed |
Ecarte | Wide Apart |
Efface | Shaded |
En Face | In Front |
Epaulement | Shouldering, with Shoulder Forward |
Pirouette | Twirl, Turn on One Leg |
Port de Bras | Carriage of Arms |
Retire | Withdrawn |
Saute | Jump |
Sissonne | Name of the person who invented this step |