Search Result for "beguine": 
Wordnet 3.0

NOUN (3)

1. (Roman Catholic Church) a member of a lay sisterhood (one of several founded in the Netherlands in the 12th and 13th centuries); though not taking religious vows the sisters followed an austere life;

2. music written in the bolero rhythm of the beguine dance;

3. a ballroom dance that originated in the French West Indies; similar to the rumba;


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Beguine \Be`guine"\, n. [F. b['e]guine; LL. beguina, beghina; fr. Lambert le B[`e]gue (the Stammerer) the founder of the order. (Du Cange.)] A woman belonging to one of the religious and charitable associations or communities in the Netherlands, and elsewhere, whose members live in beguinages and are not bound by perpetual vows. [1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

Beguine n 1: (Roman Catholic Church) a member of a lay sisterhood (one of several founded in the Netherlands in the 12th and 13th centuries); though not taking religious vows the sisters followed an austere life 2: music written in the bolero rhythm of the beguine dance 3: a ballroom dance that originated in the French West Indies; similar to the rumba