decumbiture

noun /dɪˈkʌmbɪtjʊə/

1. The fact of lying down, specifically of a person due to illness.

   obsolete

   It happened during my tedious and melancholy decumbiture...

2. The time one takes to one's bed during an illness, as used for astrological prognostications; or a chart drawn up to express this.

   historical

   By casting a figure for the decumbiture, or moment when the patient felt ill, and by resolving a question on the sight of his urine, the astrological doctor claimed to be able to diagnose the disease, prescribe the treatment, foretell when the sickness would reach its crisis, and prognosticate its eventual outcome.

Where it comes from

From Latin dēcumbo (“lie or fall down”).

Adapted from the Wiktionary entry decumbiture (CC BY-SA 4.0).

← decumandecuple →

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