hunchback
hunchback Lexical Profile
hunchback Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A person with a severe, abnormal outward curvature of the upper spine that creates a rounded hump on the back (often considered dated or offensive except in historical or literary contexts).
"Victor Hugo's classic novel centers on Quasimodo, the misunderstood bell-ringer known as the hunchback of Notre-Dame."
A rounded, humped back caused by an abnormal forward curvature of the upper spine (medically known as kyphosis).
"Years of untreated osteoporosis and spinal compression fractures gradually caused him to develop a pronounced hunchback."
Word Nuance & Usage
When referring to a person, "hunchback" is now widely considered dated and offensive outside of historical or literary contexts (such as Victor Hugo's Quasimodo); in modern medical and respectful everyday usage, the condition is called "kyphosis" and a person is described as having kyphosis or a curved spine.
Word Origin & Etymology
First recorded in the late 16th century as a compound of "hunch" (a word of uncertain origin meaning a hump or thick lump) and "back," popularized in English literature through Shakespearean history plays and 19th-century translations of Victor Hugo.