cotillion
noun
co·til·lion kō-ˈtil-yən 
kə-
variants or less commonly cotillon
kō-ˈtil-yən
kə-,
kȯ-tē-(y)ōⁿ
1
: a ballroom dance for couples that resembles the quadrille
2
: an elaborate dance with frequent changing of partners carried out under the leadership of one couple at formal balls
3
: a formal ball
Synonyms
- ball
- dance
- formal
- hop
- prom
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
young men hoping to meet the women of their dreams at the cotillion
Recent Examples on the Web Their deliverance — a joyous disco-drag cotillion of sorts — is twofold: a challenge to the expectations of tragedy inside the play and a hopeful take on intolerance about gender expression, vulnerability and sexuality outside of it. 
New York Times, 22 June 2022 In lieu of a debutante cotillion or other social ritual, the coming-out of my hair would mark my transition from girl to teenager. Michaela Angela Davis, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2022 The miserable-looking cotillion involves spats among contestants when Rachel and Suzan argue who gets to wear a silver sparkly dress, and Calah and Sara Rose feud over an issue that is never actually explained. Washington Post, 26 Nov. 2021 By the 1920s, Greek life had become a way for wealthy Southern belles like Zelda Fitzgerald to escape the restraints (literally and figuratively) of cotillion corsetry. Faran Krentcil, Harper's BAZAAR, 2 Sep. 2021 The execution scene, its appalling cruelty cloaked in ceremony, bears a grotesque resemblance to the presentation of debutantes at a cotillion ball. Andrew Delbanco, The New York Review of Books, 27 Apr. 2021 The heroine’s mother, Eunice ( Erica Gimpel ), presides over a Harlem finishing school that prepares proper little girls for cotillion. Joe Morgenstern, WSJ, 23 Dec. 2020 Committee members of the cotillion and past alumni will host a social distance parade to crown the 2020 Miss Cotillion. Briana Rice, Cincinnati.com, 1 May 2020 Also cotillion dresses in silver and emerald green and evening gowns encrusted in three-dimensional metallic blooms. Vanessa Friedman, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2020 See More
New York Times, 22 June 2022 In lieu of a debutante cotillion or other social ritual, the coming-out of my hair would mark my transition from girl to teenager. Michaela Angela Davis, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2022 The miserable-looking cotillion involves spats among contestants when Rachel and Suzan argue who gets to wear a silver sparkly dress, and Calah and Sara Rose feud over an issue that is never actually explained. Washington Post, 26 Nov. 2021 By the 1920s, Greek life had become a way for wealthy Southern belles like Zelda Fitzgerald to escape the restraints (literally and figuratively) of cotillion corsetry. Faran Krentcil, Harper's BAZAAR, 2 Sep. 2021 The execution scene, its appalling cruelty cloaked in ceremony, bears a grotesque resemblance to the presentation of debutantes at a cotillion ball. Andrew Delbanco, The New York Review of Books, 27 Apr. 2021 The heroine’s mother, Eunice ( Erica Gimpel ), presides over a Harlem finishing school that prepares proper little girls for cotillion. Joe Morgenstern, WSJ, 23 Dec. 2020 Committee members of the cotillion and past alumni will host a social distance parade to crown the 2020 Miss Cotillion. Briana Rice, Cincinnati.com, 1 May 2020 Also cotillion dresses in silver and emerald green and evening gowns encrusted in three-dimensional metallic blooms. Vanessa Friedman, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2020 See More Word History
Etymology
French cotillon, literally, petticoat, from Old French, from cote coat
First Known Use
1728, in the meaning defined at sense 1
cotillion
noun
variants also cotillon
as in prom
a social gathering for dancing young men hoping to meet the women of their dreams at the cotillion Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- prom
- dance
- ball
- festival
- formal
- festivity
- event
- soiree
- gala
- party
- reception
- masquerade
- celebration
- hop
- soirée
- fete
- shindig
- fête
- masque
- hoedown
- mixer
- blowout
- mask
- square dance