couchant

[kou-chuh nt]

adjective

lying down; crouching.

Heraldry. (of an animal) represented as lying on its stomach with its hind legs and forelegs pointed forward.

Nearby words

Origin of couchant

1400–50; late Middle English < Middle French, present participle of coucher to lay or lie. See couch, -ant

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for couchant

In Curzon's figure the lion is standing, not 'couchant', as stated by Malcolm, and grasps a scimitar in his off forepaw.
Rambles and Recollections of an Indian Official|William Sleeman
The designs of both were: Obverse—Britannia, seated on a globe, holding out a palm; a couchant lion beside her.
Chats on Military Curios|Stanley C. Johnson
At the bottom of the outer arch are two couchant beasts, the one an elephant and the other a bull.
The God-Idea of the Ancients|Eliza Burt Gamble
She was graceful as a couchant goddess and, moreover, as self-possessed as Venus must have been when courting Adonis.
Barchester Towers|Anthony Trollope

The subject was generally 'effets'—Effet de brouillard, Effet du soir, Soleil couchant.
The Kingdom of God is Within You, What is Art|Lyof N. Tolstoi

British Dictionary definitions for couchant

couchant

adjective

(usually postpositive) heraldry in a lying positiona lion couchant

Word Origin for couchant

C15: from French: lying, from Old French coucher to lay down; see couch

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012