Saltatory adj. Leaping or dancing; having the power of, or used in, leaping or dancing. Saltatory evolution (Biol.), a theory of evolution which holds that the transmutation of species is not always gradual, but that there may come sudden and marked variations. See Saltation.
Saltatory spasm (Med.), an affection in which pressure of the foot on a floor causes the patient to spring into the air, so as to make repeated involuntary motions of hopping and jumping.