ambulatory

views updated May 23 2018

am·bu·la·to·ry / ˈambyələˌtôrē/ • adj. relating to or adapted for walking. ∎ Med. able to walk; not bedridden: ambulatory patients. ∎  Med. relating to patients who are able to walk: an ambulatory care facility. ∎  movable; mobile: an ambulatory ophthalmic service.• n. (pl. -ries) a place for walking, esp. an aisle around the apse or a cloister in a church or monastery.

ambulatory

views updated Jun 11 2018

ambulatory.
1. Any place in which to process, walk, or promenade, whether partially or totally covered or uncovered, such as an ambulatio or a cloister.

2. Aisle linking the chancel-aisles behind the high-altar in a large church: it can be canted, semicircular, or straight on plan, with chapels to the east and the sanctuary to the west.

Ambulatory

views updated May 18 2018

AMBULATORY

Movable; revocable; subject to change; capable of alteration.

An ambulatory court was the former name of the Court of King's Bench in England. It would convene wherever the king who presided over it could be found, moving its location as the king moved.

An ambulatory disposition is a judgment, decree, or sentence that is subject to change, amendment, or revocation.

A will is considered ambulatory because as long as the person who made it lives, it can always be changed or revoked.

ambulatory

views updated Jun 27 2018

ambulatory XVII. — L. ambulātōrius (in medL. ambulātōrium as sb.), f. pp. stem of ambulāre walk; see -ORY1, -ORY2.

ambulatory

views updated May 23 2018

ambulatory (am-bew-layt-er-i) adj. relating to walking. a. treatment treatment that enables or encourages a patient to remain on his or her feet.