recumbent

adjective re·cum·bent \ri-ˈkəm-bənt\

: lying down

Full Definition of RECUMBENT

a : suggestive of repose : leaning, resting

b : lying down

: representing a person lying down <a recumbent statue>

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Examples of RECUMBENT

… the psychiatrist's popular image remains that of a little bearded figure with a Central European accent, scribbling away in a notebook behind his recumbent patient. —Roland Littlewood, Times Literary Supplement, September 1984
A recumbent figure started up from the grass and came running toward them through the flickering screen of light and shade. —Willa Cather, O Pioneers!, 1913
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Origin of RECUMBENT

Latin recumbent-, recumbens, present participle of recumbere to lie down, from re- + -cumbere to lie down; akin to Latin cubare to lie

First Known Use: 1664

Synonym Discussion of RECUMBENT

prone, supine, prostrate, recumbent mean lying down. prone implies a position with the front of the body turned toward the supporting surface <push-ups require a prone position>. supine implies lying on one's back and suggests inertness or abjectness <lying supine on the couch>. prostrate implies lying full-length as in submission, defeat, or physical collapse <a runner fell prostrate at the finish line>. recumbent implies the posture of one sleeping or resting <a patient comfortably recumbent in a hospital bed>.