cavort

Meaning

Verb

• To prance, frolic, gambol.
• To move about carelessly, playfully or boisterously.
• To engage in extravagant pursuits, especially of a sexual nature.

Origin

• Originated in the United States in 1793, as cauvaut, applying to horses, probably from the colloquial intensifying prefix ca- + vault; later generalized. Early sources connect it to cavault, a term for a certain demeanor of horses. Alternatively, a variation of curvet.