lordosis

[ lawr-doh-sis ]

noun

Pathology. an abnormal forward curvature of the spine in the lumbar region, resulting in a swaybacked posture.: Compare kyphosis, scoliosis.
a posture assumed by some female mammals during mating, in which the back arches downward.

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Origin of lordosis

1695–1705; <New Latin <Greek lórdōsis literally, a bending back, equivalent to lord(ós) bent backwards + -ōsis-osis

Other words from lordosis

lor·dot·ic [lawr-dot-ik], /lɔrˈdɒt ɪk/, adjective

Words Nearby lordosis

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use lordosis in a sentence

Gloria tried to remember the medical term for it: it was something to do with a lordosis.
Hex | Laurence Mark Janifer (AKA Larry M. Harris)
This is known as “Thomas' flexion test,” and is founded upon the inability to extend the diseased hip without producing lordosis.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition. | Alexander Miles
By thus converting a posterior into an anterior dislocation, the tilting of the pelvis and the lordosis are greatly diminished.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition. | Alexander Miles
The absence of a compensatory lordosis in such a condition would warrant the inference that the patient had been bed-ridden.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition. | Alexander Miles

British Dictionary definitions for lordosis

lordosis

/ (lɔːˈdəʊsɪs) /

noun

pathol forward curvature of the lumbar spine: congenital or caused by trauma or disease: Nontechnical name: hollow-back Compare kyphosis, scoliosis
zoology concave arching of the back occurring in many female animals during sexual stimulation

Origin of lordosis

C18: New Latin from Greek lordōsis, from lordos bent backwards

Derived forms of lordosis

lordotic (lɔːˈdɒtɪk), adjective

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

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