ta·bes·cent (t?-b?s??nt)adj. Progressively wasting away.[Latin t?b?sc?ns, t?b?scent-, present participle of t?b?scere, to waste away, inchoative of t?b?re, from t?b?s, a wasting away.]ta·bes?cence n.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.tabescent (t??b?s?nt) adj1. (Pathology) progressively emaciating; wasting away2. (Pathology) of, relating to, or having tabes[C19: from Latin t?b?scere, from tabes] ta?bescence nCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014