levant and couchant

adjective

lev·​ant and cou·​chant

¦levəntən¦kau̇chənt

: rising up and lying down

—used of trespassing beasts and indicating that they have been long enough on land to lie down and rise up to feed, such time being held to include a day and night at the least and being required as grounds for legal distraint

Word History

Etymology

alteration of Middle English couchant and levant, partial translation of Middle French couchant et levant lying down and rising up, from couchant (present participle of coucher to lay down, se coucher to lie down) + et and + levant (present participle of lever to raise, se lever to rise)

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