verb (used with object), mortified, mortifying. 1. to humiliate or shame, as by injury to one's pride or self-respect. 2. to subjugate (the body, passions, etc.) by abstinence, ascetic discipline, or self-inflicted suffering. 3. Pathology. to affect with gangrene or necrosis. verb (used without object), mortified, mortifying.
spinal tap noun. plural spinal taps. spinal tap. noun. plural spinal taps. Learner's definition of SPINAL TAP. [count] medical. : a procedure in which a needle is inserted into the spinal cord in order to take out fluid or inject medicine.
A Patient's Guide to Spinal Taps. What it is: A spinal tap is done to take a sample of spinal fluid and reading of the spinal fluid pressure. A spinal tap is also necessary if you are having a myelogram. The spinal tap is most commonly done to look for infection, cancers, and bleeding into the brain or spinal cord. What the test shows: A spinal tap is done in order to get a sample of the cerebrospinal fluid that surrounds the spinal cord.