rigor mortis

noun

rig·or mor·tis

ˌri-gər-ˈmȯr-təs,

also chiefly British

ˌrī-ˌgȯ-ˈmȯ-təs

: temporary rigidity of muscles occurring after death

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Rigor mortis, which translates from Latin as "stiffness of death", sets in quickly and usually ends three or four days after death. The condition results from a lack of certain chemicals in the muscles; it may be affected by muscular activity before death as well as the external temperature. Mystery writers frequently make use of rigor mortis as a means by which the detective or the examiner can determine the time of the victim's death, which often turns out to be all-important in solving the case.

Examples of rigor mortis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Court records also show that when the child, Nicholas Ward, was brought to the hospital by John Michael Ward and the mother, the child was not breathing, had no pulse, was cold to the touch and rigor mortis had already begun to set in. —

Warren Kulo | Wkulo@al.com, al, 31 Aug. 2023 To delay rigor mortis for up to a few days, fish can be deep-frozen immediately after they are caught. —

Elsbeth Sites, Discover Magazine, 22 Apr. 2014 Serna was discovered an hour later, deceased, with rigor mortis setting in, the county Citizens’ Law Enforcement Review Board investigation found. —

Jeff McDonald, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 June 2023 Lucca Mortis is chiming, rhyming with rigor mortis. —

Vulture, 3 May 2023 Since rigor mortis sets in roughly between six to eight hours after death, if the hands came from living victims, they must have been severed shortly before the offering ceremony. —

Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 7 Apr. 2023 They were probably severed after rigor mortis–a tightening of the tendons in the hours after death–had passed, Gresky argues. —

Byandrew Curry, science.org, 5 Apr. 2023 Fresh is best About six hours after the fish is killed a phenomenon common to all animals, rigor mortis, sets in. —

Elsbeth Sites, Discover Magazine, 22 Apr. 2014 Then, her body slides off of the wall and rigor mortis rears its ugly head, and Jackie’s ear falls off, traumatizing Shauna. —

Radhika Menon, ELLE, 23 Mar. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rigor mortis.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.