to dance attendance
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To wait obsequiously, to be at the beck and call of another. It was an ancient custom at weddings for the bride, no matter how tired she was, to dance with every guest.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to dance attendance” mean?
To wait obsequiously, to be at the beck and call of another. It was an ancient custom at weddings for the bride, no matter how tired she was, to dance with every guest.
Is “to dance attendance” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.