rigadoon

noun

rig·​a·​doon ˌri-gə-ˈdün How to pronounce rigadoon (audio)
variants or rigaudon
: a lively dance of the 17th and 18th centuries
also : the music for a rigadoon

Examples of rigadoon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
And yet, in a rigadoon like the one the U.S. and Iran have engaged in the past 40 years, chucking out the script is perhaps the only sane response right now. Holman W. Jenkins, WSJ, 25 June 2019

Word History

Etymology

French rigaudon

First Known Use

1691, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of rigadoon was in 1691

Dictionary Entries Near rigadoon

Cite this Entry

“Rigadoon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rigadoon. Accessed 27 Nov. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on rigadoon

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!