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fetal position
noun
: a position (as of a sleeping person) in which the body lies curled up on one side with the arms and legs drawn up and the head bowed forward and which is assumed in some forms of psychic regression
Examples of fetal position in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
As Ventura lies on the floor, motionless in a fetal position, Combs picks up her bags and stomps her.
—Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 19 May 2024
As Ventura lies on the floor in a fetal position, Combs picks up her bags and kicks her again.
—Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 17 May 2024
In the predawn darkness of Sept. 4, 2023, a passing truck driver saw a teenager lying in the fetal position on the side of an Oklahoma highway.
—Emily Palmer, Peoplemag, 14 May 2024
Boyko zoomed in on the body, which appeared to be lying in a fetal position.
—Luke Mogelson, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
Curl up on the couch in a fetal position and let the country go to hell?
—Sean Woods, Rolling Stone, 2 Apr. 2024
When the door finally open, the man was on the floor in the fetal position, bleeding from his torso.
—Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 29 Mar. 2024
The freshman guard groped at her left ankle, writhing back and forth in agony, rolling into the fetal position as a trainer rushed over and sat her up.
—Luca Evans, Orange County Register, 9 Mar. 2024
In three videos, students can be seen curled in fetal positions while they are being punched and kicked by other students.
—Nicole Asbury, Washington Post, 8 Sep. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fetal position.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1887, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near fetal position
Cite this Entry
“Fetal position.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fetal%20position. Accessed 10 Jun. 2024.
Medical Definition
fetal position
noun
: a position (as of a sleeping person) in which the body lies curled up on one side with the arms and legs drawn up toward the chest and the head is bowed forward and which is assumed in some forms of psychological regression
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