1. A style of popular Brazilian music derived from the samba but with more melodic and harmonic complexity and less emphasis on percussion.
2. A lively Brazilian dance that is similar to the samba.

[Portuguese : bossa, trend + nova, new.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.