Phrase guide

tea dance

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A late afternoon or early evening dance, typically with a live orchestra (often referred to as a palm court orchestra) playing light classical music.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: dated

Examples

  • Since the 1970s, gay-oriented tea dances have been popular with the gay community.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Any late afternoon or early evening dance, especially one similar to nightclub dancing that would usually be held later at night.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: Canada, US

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

2 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • French: thé dansant — late afternoon or early evening dance
  • Persian: ته دانسان (te-dânsân) — late afternoon or early evening dance