From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishfoetal positionˈfoetal poˌsition noun [countable] MBHBHthe body position of an unborn child inside its mother, in which the body is curled and the legs are pulled up against the chest
Examples from the Corpus
foetal position• Some even resort in the middle of a battle to lying motionless in a foetal position.• Emily was curled up in a foetal position, naked, on the floor, sobbing.• The spasms nearly always cause targets to curl into a foetal position.• He struggled painfully around into a new foetal position and started work on the back of the back seat.• McAggott climbed over the sergeant, who had assumed the foetal position, and staggered back to his office.• This one is about three hours old and still lying in the foetal position in which it emerged from the egg.• He was a short man, slight in build, and was curled up in the foetal position. 