Moves about or walks from place to place; the third-person singular present tense of 'ambulate.' Often used in medical contexts to describe a patient's ability to walk.
From Latin 'ambulare' (to walk), which also gave us 'ambulance' and 'somnambulism.' The verb entered English medical terminology in the 18th-19th centuries.
When a hospital report says a patient 'ambulates well,' it's using a verb derived from the same Latin root as 'ambulance'—a word-pairing that captures humanity's ancient need to move, heal, and help others move again.
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