decumbent

American  

[dih-kuhm-buhnt] / dɪˈkʌm bənt /

adjective

1. lying down; recumbent.

2. Botany. (of stems, branches, etc.) lying or trailing on the ground with the extremity tending to ascend.

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decumbent British  

/ dɪˈkʌmbənt /

adjective

1. lying down or lying flat

2. botany (of certain stems) lying flat with the tip growing upwards

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Other Word Forms

• decumbence noun
• decumbency noun
• decumbently adverb

Etymology

Origin of decumbent

1635–45; < Latin dēcumbent- (stem of dēcumbēns ), present participle of dēcumbere. See decubitus, -ent

Example Sentences

Most arrived more or less by acceptable means, but the suburban affliction defined as "a grass with creeping or decumbent stems which root freely at the nodes" sneaked in.

From Time Magazine Archive

The root of the hoary, decumbent, and less elegant, but larger-flowered Hedysarum mackenzii is poisonous, and nearly killed an old Indian woman at Fort Simpson, who had mistaken it for that of the preceding species.

From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer

Leaves.—Alternate; fleshy; spatulate; six to ten lines long; sessile; crowded in rosettes at the ends of the decumbent branches.

From The Wild Flowers of California: Their Names, Haunts, and Habits by Parsons, Mary Elizabeth

It branches freely from the base; branches are tufted, decumbent at first but soon becoming erect, slender, glabrous, compressed and leafy, varying in length from 1 to 3 feet.

From A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses by Rangachari, K.

Its decumbent stems are thickly clothed with small, ovate, stemless leaves, and its silvery foliage makes a beautiful setting for its large golden flowers.

From The Wild Flowers of California: Their Names, Haunts, and Habits by Parsons, Mary Elizabeth