Definition

Noun: 1. A Cuban dance in duple time: A slow, graceful dance of Cuban origin, characterized by a distinctive rhythm. 2. Music composed for this dance: A piece of music, typically in 2/4 time, with a characteristic rhythmic pattern, used for dancing the habanera.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Dance):
  • The couple performed a sensual habanera at the ball.
  • She learned the basic steps of the habanera.
• Noun (Music):
  • The most famous habanera is from the opera "Carmen".
  • The composer included a habanera in his suite of Latin American dances.

Advanced Usage

• Musical Rhythm: The term "habanera rhythm" refers specifically to the dance's characteristic rhythmic pattern (a dotted eighth note, a sixteenth note, and two eighth notes), which has influenced many other music genres like tango and jazz.
  • You can hear the habanera rhythm in the bass line of that song.

Variants and Related Words

• Habanera rhythm (noun phrase): The specific syncopated rhythmic pattern associated with the habanera.

Synonyms

• Dance: Cuban dance.
• Music: Dance piece, musical composition.

Related Idioms or Phrases

(This word is highly specific as a dance and music term and is not commonly used in idiomatic phrases.)

Noun

1. a Cuban dance in duple time
2. music composed in duple time for dancing the habanera