A majorette is a baton twirler who performs a twirling routine that is often accompanied by dance, movement, or gymnastics. Majorettes are primarily associated with marching bands during parades, but they can also perform at sporting events and other venues. Some majorettes also spin knives, fire knives, flags, light-up batons, fire batons, maces, and rifles, and some can twirl up to four batons at a time. Majorettes are often confused with cheerleaders, but baton twirling is more closely related to rhythmic gymnastics than to cheerleading.

Majorettes originally performed a typical carnival dance originating in the Rhineland, where the young women who perform this dance are called Tanzmariechen (Dance Marys) in German or Dansmarietjes in Dutch. During the post-war carnival, young women and girls again took on the role of Tanzmariechen instead of men and performed in parades. A show element was added to carnival, partly because of rapidly evolving ballet education. Majorettes or Tanzmariechen increasingly began to act in groups. Some parts of the Prussian military background are sometimes still reflected today in the majorettes movements, music, or clothing. Although current majorettes have their roots in carnival dance, they have evolved into a show dance group that incorporates multiple styles of dancing, including jazz, hip-hop, ballet, burlesque, cabaret, and kick lines.

There are two main forms of majorette dancing in the United States, which vary based on region. In some places, such as the Midwest and the South, traditional majorette dancing takes place in front of or alongside a marching band and involves mainly baton twirling and clean, crisp jazz technique. In areas with a high concentration of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), majorettes take on a whole different form. HBCU majorettes sometimes include baton twirling, but also incorporate a wider variety of dance styles, from West African, hip hop, step, bucking, and jazz.