suspended animation
noun
1
: temporary suspension of the vital functions (as in persons nearly drowned)
2
: a condition (such as inactivity) likened to suspended animation
Synonyms
Examples of suspended animation in a Sentence
animals that sleep through the winter in a state of suspended animation
the husband's feeling that their love life was in suspended animation while his wife lavished all her attention on the new baby
Recent Examples on the Web
Tessier, meanwhile, focuses exclusively on applying the science of hibernation and suspended animation to organs that are being held for transplantation, to prevent them from being injured in the process.
—
Deborah Balthazar, STAT, 22 July 2024
Increasingly beset by uncontrollable twitches, loss of balance and hallucinations, patients beg for a return to suspended animation.
—Dallas News, 28 June 2022
For the past eight months, the yellow-bellied marmot has been hibernating, existing in suspended animation to survive the bitterly cold winter.
—Holly Barker, Discover Magazine, 6 Apr. 2022
With the economy practically in suspended animation at the start of the pandemic, car sales plummeted.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Feb. 2022
See all Example Sentences for suspended animation 
Deborah Balthazar, STAT, 22 July 2024
Increasingly beset by uncontrollable twitches, loss of balance and hallucinations, patients beg for a return to suspended animation.
—Dallas News, 28 June 2022
For the past eight months, the yellow-bellied marmot has been hibernating, existing in suspended animation to survive the bitterly cold winter.
—Holly Barker, Discover Magazine, 6 Apr. 2022
With the economy practically in suspended animation at the start of the pandemic, car sales plummeted.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Feb. 2022
See all Example Sentences for suspended animation
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'suspended animation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near suspended animation
Cite this Entry
“Suspended animation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/suspended%20animation. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
suspended animation
noun
sus·pend·ed animation
sə-ˈspend-əd- 
: temporary suspension of the vital functions (as in persons nearly drowned)
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