(in classical riding) a movement in which the horse performs a series of jumps on the hind legs without the forelegs touching the ground.
（古典马术中的）直立跳跃
Example sentencesExamples
Not knowing a pesade from a pirouette or a courbette from a capriole, I was seduced by the riders’ dashing livery of black boots, white tights, brown dress coat and gilded bicorn hat.
He has gone from being at death's door to doing courbettes out in the pasture!
In different occasions they had shows where the horses performed courbettes on a volte or in a cross, capriols were performed and many more complicated movements were involved.
The horses performed caprioles, courbettes, and levades in hand.
They then graduate to the ‘aerial exercises’, with pesades, levades, courbettes and caprioles.
Origin
Mid 17th century: French, from Italian corvetta 'little curve', based on Latin curvus 'curved'.