A lively French dance from the 18th century, or a type of English knitted fabric with a smooth finish.
From French 'anglaise,' meaning 'English,' derived from 'Angle' referring to England. The term was used by the French to describe fashionable English dances and textiles that became popular in continental Europe.
The 'anglaise' dance craze shows how cross-cultural fashion works—the French gave an English thing a French name, and everyone wanted it! It's like how 'English muffins' aren't actually English, or how French fries came from Belgium.
A French dance form; 'anglaise' is the feminine form of 'anglais,' embedding gendered grammatical marking that can obscure when discussing the form in mixed or male-centered contexts.
Use 'anglaise' or 'English country dance' depending on context; be aware feminine ending reflects French grammar, not gender of dancers.
["English country dance","anglaise (English dance form)"]
Women danced the anglaise across European courts; their participation in these social dances was integral to aristocratic life, though histories often centered men's roles.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.