rachitic

Meaning

1. Of or pertaining to, or affected by, rickets (“a disorder of infancy and early childhood due to a deficiency of vitamin D, causing soft or weak bones”).
2. (figuratively) In a precarious or weak condition; likely to break down or collapse; feeble, rickety.

Synonyms

rickety

sluggish

underfed

Translations

rachitico

rachitisch

rachitique

raquític

ραχιτικός

magro

denutrito

bambino rachitico

flaco

raquítico

denutrido

niño raquítico

schwerfällig

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ɹəˈkɪtɪk/

Etymology

From rachitis (“rickets”) + -ic (suffix forming adjectives from nouns with the sense ‘of or pertaining to’), possibly modelled after French rachitique or Late Latin rachiticus. Rachitis is an unadapted borrowing from New Latin rachitis, used by the British physician Francis Glisson (1597–1677) to refer to rickets, from Koine Greek ῥαχῖτις (rhakhîtis) (in ῥαχῖτις νόσος (rhakhîtis nósos, “spinal inflammation”, literally “spinal disease”)), the feminine form of ῥαχίτης (rhakhítēs, “in or of the spine, spinal”), from Ancient Greek ῥάχῐς (rhákhĭs, “lower part of the back; (anatomy) backbone, spine”) (probably ultimately Pre-Greek) + -ῖτις (-îtis) (feminine form of -ῑ́της (-ī́tēs, suffix forming nouns with the sense ‘one connected to’)).