Sauté is a classical ballet term that can be used alone or with another term to mean the step is performed while jumping.
When used alone, it simply means “jump” and may be often repeated by a teacher during a combination in a ballet class… “Sauté, sauté, sauté, close fifth!”
Two examples of it being used with other ballet terms are echappe sauté and sauté basque.
Many ballet steps can be done on the ground or while jumping. Using the above examples, an echappe on the ground would have the dancer just slide their feet into second or fourth position without their feet losing touch with the ground. But, an echappe sauté would have the dancer first jump in the air from a position and land in the second or fourth position.
