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.
1 A spinal tap is a procedure performed when a doctor or health care professional needs to evaluate the cerebrospinal fluid (also known as spinal fluid or CSF). Spinal tap is also referred to as a lumbar puncture, or LP.  Some of the reasons your doctor may want to do a spinal tap include the following: