supine
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supine
- /ˈs(j)uːpaɪn/ UK
- /ˌsuˈpaɪn/ US
- /ˈsuˌpaɪn/ US
Rhymes with -uːpaɪn, (General American) -aɪn
Where it comes from
The adjective is borrowed from Latin supīnus, from *sup- (see sub (“under”)) + -īnus (“of, pertaining to”). The word is cognate with Catalan supí, Italian supino, Old French sovin, Middle French souvin, Anglo-Norman supin, Old Occitan sobin, sopin, Portuguese supino, Spanish supino. Partly displaced Old English upweard (“upward, supine”), whence Modern English upward.
The noun is from Late Middle English supin (“supine of a Latin verb”) or Middle French supin (“(grammar) supine”), from Latin supīnum, (ellipsis of supīnum verbum (“supine verb”)), from supīnus; further etymology above.
adjective more supine · most supine
- 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.
- 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
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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.
Similar: passive, peaceful, lazy, lethargic, listless, adiaphroistic, apathetic, apathistical, blasé, blithe, deaf, cool
- 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: [...]
noun supines
- 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, cæsum: […]
- 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. The three conjugations are distinguished principally by the ending of the supine. In the first conjugation the supine ends in at, as: tala speak talat spoken. In the second conjugation the supine ends in t after a consonant, as: köpa buy köpt bought. In the third conjugation the supine ends in it, a
- (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.
Thesaurus
Translations
Every language
adj lying on its back
| Español | supino, espalditendido |
|---|---|
| Português | supino |
| Français | supinal |
| Deutsch | in Rückenlage |
| Italiano | supino |
| Ελληνικά | ύπτιος ýptios |
| Русский | лежа́щий на спине́ ležáščij na spiné, лежа́щий на́взничь ležáščij návzničʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | ngả, ngả lưng, ngửa |
| עברית | פְּרַקְדָּן praqdán |
adj inclining or leaning backward
| Português | inclinado |
|---|
Talk about this word "supine." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/supine. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. supine. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/supine "supine." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/supine.Cite this
@misc{supine_2026,
title = {supine},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/supine},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
