What does batterie mean?
Batterie is a French word absorbed into specialized English vocabulary, where it survives in two distinct domains. In ballet, it names the art of batterie — the rapid beating movements in which a dancer's legs strike against one another mid-air, most famously in steps like the entrechat; critics praise dancers for 'clean' or 'brilliant' batterie. In the kitchen, it appears in the phrase batterie de cuisine, which denotes the complete assembly of pots, pans, and utensils a cook commands — a term beloved of cookbook writers and culinary retailers. Both uses descend from the French verb battre, 'to beat': the legs literally beat, and kitchen implements were once associated with pounding and striking. Because the ordinary English form of the word is 'battery', 'batterie' signals deliberate Frenchness and is best reserved for these technical contexts. It lends writing about dance or cooking an air of connoisseurship and precision.
nounA French borrowing used in English chiefly in two fixed expressions: in ballet, 'batterie' refers to the beating movements in which the legs strike against each other in the air; in cooking, 'batterie de cuisine' denotes the complete set of pots, pans, and utensils used by a cook.
- In ballet, the technique of beating the legs together in the air during jumps such as entrechats and brisés.
- In 'batterie de cuisine', the full complement of cooking equipment — pots, pans, knives, and utensils — belonging to a kitchen or cook.
"Her entrechat quatre was praised as a model of clean, precise batterie."
"The corps de ballet's batterie was crisp and perfectly synchronized."
"A serious home cook eventually accumulates an impressive batterie de cuisine."
Rarely pluralized outside the culinary phrase; when referring to multiple sets of kitchen equipment, 'batteries de cuisine' follows the French pattern.
"The restaurant's kitchens housed several batteries de cuisine assembled over decades."
The same French word that describes a dancer's flashing leg beats also names a chef's prized collection of copper pans.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of batterie
Batterie comes from the French verb battre ('to beat'), from the Latin verb battuere of the same meaning. It entered English as a borrowing from French, retaining the French spelling in its specialist senses. The common English word 'battery' derives from the same French source, so the two are doublets of a sort rather than unrelated words. Cognates sharing the Latin root include 'battle', 'combat', and 'battalion'.
How batterie is actually used
Almost always encountered within the fixed phrases 'batterie de cuisine' (culinary) or in ballet criticism and instruction. Outside these contexts, English speakers use 'battery'. Retains its French pronunciation in cultivated usage.
Easily confused with batterie
'Battery' is the standard English word for a set of connected cells, an artillery unit, or the act of beating, whereas 'batterie' is the French spelling retained only in specialist ballet and culinary vocabulary.