tetanic

[ tuh-tan-ik ]

/ təˈtæn ɪk /

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adjective

Pathology. pertaining to, of the nature of, or characterized by tetanus.

Medicine/Medical. noting a medicine or poison that can cause tetanic spasms of the muscles.Compare tetany.

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Sometimes te·tan·i·cal .

Origin of tetanic

1720–30; <Latin tetanicus<Greek tetanikós, equivalent to tétan(os) spasm, tetanus + -ikos-ic

OTHER WORDS FROM tetanic

te·tan·i·cal·ly, adverbpost·te·tan·ic, adjectivesub·te·tan·ic, adjectivesub·te·tan·i·cal, adjective

Words nearby tetanic

testudinal, testudinate, testudo, testy, Tet, tetanic, tetaniform, tetanigenous, tetanism, tetanize, tetano-

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use tetanic in a sentence

In every case an immunizing dose of anti-tetanic serum should be given.
Lameness of the Horse|John Victor Lacroix
The universal practice now is to inoculate with anti-tetanic serum just as soon as possible after a wound has been received.
Training for the Trenches|Leslie Vickers
Injury of the brain causes, as in higher animals, tetanic spasms and involuntary reflex movements, followed by stupefaction.
Animal Intelligence|George J. Romanes
Tetanic and general convulsions are produced; and the immediate cause of death is a spasm of the muscles of respiration.
The Action of Medicines in the System|Frederick William Headland

In two cases which we witnessed of individuals poisoned by strychnine, similar tetanic phenomena were observed.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 62, No. 383, September 1847|Various

British Dictionary definitions for tetanic

tetanic

/ (təˈtænɪk) /

adjective

of, relating to, or producing tetanus or the spasms of tetanus

noun

a tetanic drug or agent

Derived forms of tetanic

tetanically, adverb

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

Medical definitions for tetanic

tetanic

[ tĕ-tăn′ĭk ]

adj.

Of or causing tetanus or tetany.

Marked by sustained muscular contractions.

An agent that in poisonous doses produces tonic muscular spasm.