Sekirov Dictionary

supine

UK /ˈs(j)uːpaɪn/US /ˌsuˈpaɪn/

adjective 4
noun 3
forms 3

adjective4

•
Lying on its back.
- Poor Pnin had come down the last steps on his back. He lay supine for a moment, his eyes moving to and fro. — 1957
•
(literary, rare) Inclining or leaning backward; inclined, sloping.
- But if the Vine / On rising Ground be plac'd, or Hills supine, / Extend thy loose Battalions largely wide, / Opening thy Ranks and Files on either Side: [...] — 1697
•
(figurative) Reluctant to take action due to indifference or moral weakness; apathetic or passive towards something.
- Such corruption is commonplace in a world of supine civil servants and underfunded ministries.
•
Of the hand, forearm or foot, turned facing toward the body or upward: with the thumb outward (palm up), or with the big toe raised relative to the little toe.
- when one is washing one’s face, the hand is in the supine position; and then the forearm is also in the supine position; when the foot is resting on the outer side of the sole, it is in the supine position

noun[before a noun]3

•
In Latin and other languages: a type of verbal noun used in the ablative and accusative cases, which shares the same stem as the passive participle.
- And here also you may observ, that the syllable which is doubled in the Preterperfect tens is not doubled in the Supines, as totondi to clip, make's tonsum: cecídi to beat, caesum: […] — 1653
In Swedish, Faroese, Icelandic and Old Norse: a verb form that combines with an inflection of ha/hafa/hava to form the present perfect and pluperfect tenses.
(obsolete terminology) The 'to'-prefixed infinitive in English or other Germanic languages, so named because the infinitive was regarded as a verbal noun and the 'to'-prefixed form of it was seen as the dative form of the verbal noun; the full infinitive.

forms

supines · more supine · most supine

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