Meanings
plural song-and-dance men
- slightly datedA multi-talented entertainer who specializes in combining singing, dancing, and sometimes light comedy.
There was music in John's blood. His paternal grandfather, also named John, was a professional song-and-dance man.
2020, The Editors of PEOPLE, “John”, in PEOPLE Celebrating Beatlemania, page 27
Origin
From song-and-dance + -man. The term originates from the late 19th-century era of American vaudeville, where performers put on crowd-pleasing, variety-style routines.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
song-and-dance man. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/song-and-dance%20man
“song-and-dance man.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/song-and-dance%20man. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “song-and-dance man,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/song-and-dance%20man.
Source: song-and-dance man on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.