Jaunty — A Vocabulary Story
Anika's Jaunty Bow
Anika stood behind the curtain at a Fort Kochi arts centre, clutching her tap shoes as the announcer called her name. Everyone expected a jaunty dance, but her feet felt glued to the floor.
Jaunty means having or expressing a lively, cheerful, and self-confident manner.
For weeks, she had practised the routine in her room, adding a jaunty swing of the arms and a bright little kick at the end. Now the stage lights looked huge, and the audience sounded like the sea.
Her dance partner, Meera, had twisted her ankle that morning, so Anika had to perform alone. She took one step forward, then stopped. A whisper came from the front row, and panic tightened in her chest.
Then she spotted Meera near the exit, balancing on crutches, wearing the sequined hat from their costume box. Meera tilted it at a jaunty angle and gave a ridiculous wink.
Anika almost laughed. She copied the tilt with her own hat, lifted her chin, and walked on with jaunty confidence she did not quite feel yet.
The music began. Her first steps were shaky, but the jaunty rhythm caught her. Tap, turn, kick. The crowd clapped along. By the final spin, her fear had shrunk beneath the sound of her shoes.
Anika bowed jauntily, hat tipped low, while Meera cheered loudest from the back.
Word Definition
jaunty
meaning
having or expressing a lively, cheerful, and self-confident manner
synonyms
lively · perky · rollicking · sprightly · bouncing
antonyms
depressed · languid · unhappy
example sentence
He walked with a jaunty step down the street.