Meanings
- archaicnonce worduncountablepremature burial
1 more example
In Great Britain, where the custom is to keep the body above ground so long, that evidences of putrid decomposition usually present themselves before interment, but little danger can exist; and consequently, the subject of zoothapsis has scarcely received due attention from the medico-legal writers of that country.
1880, College and Clinical Record, volume 1, page 60
Origin
- Ancient Greekζωός“alive”
- Englishzoothapsis
From Ancient Greek ζωός (zōós, “alive”) and θάπτω (tháptō, “bury”).
More words from Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
zoothapsis. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/zoothapsis
“zoothapsis.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/zoothapsis. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “zoothapsis,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/zoothapsis.
Source: zoothapsis on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.