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oscitancy

 - 3 dictionary results

os⋅ci⋅tant

  [os-i-tuhnt]
Use oscitancy in a Sentence
–adjective
1. yawning, as with drowsiness; gaping.
2. drowsy or inattentive.
3. dull, lazy, or negligent.
Origin:
1615–25; < L ōscitant- (s. of ōscitāns) (prp. of ōscitāre to gape, yawn), equiv. to ōs mouth + cit(āre) to put in motion) + -ant- -ant

Related forms:
os⋅ci⋅tan⋅cy, os⋅ci⋅tance, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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os·ci·tan·cy   (ŏs'ĭ-tən-sē)   
n.   pl. os·ci·tan·cies

  1. The act of yawning.

  2. The state of being drowsy or inattentive; dullness.


[From oscitant, yawning, from Latin ōscitāns, ōscitant-, present participle of ōscitāre, to yawn : ōs, mouth; see ōs- in Indo-European roots + citāre, to move; see kei-2 in Indo-European roots.]
os'ci·tant adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

oscitant 
"yawning," from L. oscitans, prp. of oscitare "to gape, yawn," from os citare "to move the mouth" (see oral and cite).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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