adultery

noun

adul·tery ə-ˈdəl-t(ə-)rē How to pronounce adultery (audio)

plural adulteries

: voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and someone other than that person's current spouse or partner

also : an act of adultery

Did you know?

What’s the difference between adultery and fornication?

In case you were wondering, the words adultery and adult are not etymologically related (in other words, adultery didn’t grow out of adult in the way that punditry grew out of pundit). Although both words come from Latin and share the same first five letters, adultery is from adulterāre (“to pollute, defile, commit adultery”), a word formed ultimately from the Latin elements ad- “to, near” and alter “other.” English adult comes from adultus, which is the past participle of the Latin word adolescere (“to grow up”).

In legal use there is a difference between adultery and fornication. Adultery is only used when at least one of the parties involved (either male or female) is married, whereas fornication may be used to describe two people who are unmarried (to each other or anyone else) engaging in consensual sexual intercourse.

Example Sentences

He found out that his wife had committed adultery. She accused her husband of adultery.

Recent Examples on the Web The ruins of Julia's Villa, named after the daughter of Emperor Augustus, exiled here by her father on charges of adultery, are still visible.

Silvia Marchetti, CNN, 11 Aug. 2022 But the show seemed uninterested in grappling with this messiness, and instead treated it just as age-inappropriate adultery.

Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 8 June 2022 Prosecutors have long enjoyed latitude to ignore outdated laws such as those penalizing adultery or let minor offenses such as recreational marijuana use slide.

Laura Kusisto, WSJ, 22 May 2022 Before the new process for separation came into effect, an individual had to accuse a spouse of desertion, adultery, or unreasonable behavior to be able to petition for a divorce.

Erika Page, The Christian Science Monitor, 16 May 2022 Adrian Lyne's tale of adultery and murder is unfaithful to the ending of the original book.

Clark Collis, EW.com, 19 Mar. 2022 The nuclear families behind that fence were as broken and troubled as yours and mine by divorce, perversion, addiction, deceit, disaffection, violence, adultery, and we can each complete our personal list.

David Mamet, National Review, 3 Mar. 2022 Each plot builds upon certain themes (often including family, addiction, adultery, forgiveness, and healing), but the storylines are clunky without actually being effective because they’re overburdened by drama.

Ineye Komonibo, refinery29.com, 1 Mar. 2022 The Taliban previously has imposed harsh penalties, including death sentences, for infractions linked to adultery, blasphemy, non-compliance with dress codes, working with the U.S. government and more.

Kiara Alfonseca, ABC News, 22 Aug. 2021 See More

单词	adultery
释义	adultery noun adul·tery ə-ˈdəl-t(ə-)rē plural adulteries : voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and someone other than that person's current spouse or partner also : an act of adultery Did you know? What’s the difference between adultery and fornication? In case you were wondering, the words adultery and adult are not etymologically related (in other words, adultery didn’t grow out of adult in the way that punditry grew out of pundit). Although both words come from Latin and share the same first five letters, adultery is from adulterāre (“to pollute, defile, commit adultery”), a word formed ultimately from the Latin elements ad- “to, near” and alter “other.” English adult comes from adultus, which is the past participle of the Latin word adolescere (“to grow up”). In legal use there is a difference between adultery and fornication. Adultery is only used when at least one of the parties involved (either male or female) is married, whereas fornication may be used to describe two people who are unmarried (to each other or anyone else) engaging in consensual sexual intercourse. Synonyms cheating infidelity misconduct two-timing unfaithfulness See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences He found out that his wife had committed adultery. She accused her husband of adultery. Recent Examples on the Web The ruins of Julia's Villa, named after the daughter of Emperor Augustus, exiled here by her father on charges of adultery, are still visible. Silvia Marchetti, CNN, 11 Aug. 2022 But the show seemed uninterested in grappling with this messiness, and instead treated it just as age-inappropriate adultery. Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 8 June 2022 Prosecutors have long enjoyed latitude to ignore outdated laws such as those penalizing adultery or let minor offenses such as recreational marijuana use slide. Laura Kusisto, WSJ, 22 May 2022 Before the new process for separation came into effect, an individual had to accuse a spouse of desertion, adultery, or unreasonable behavior to be able to petition for a divorce. Erika Page, The Christian Science Monitor, 16 May 2022 Adrian Lyne's tale of adultery and murder is unfaithful to the ending of the original book. Clark Collis, EW.com, 19 Mar. 2022 The nuclear families behind that fence were as broken and troubled as yours and mine by divorce, perversion, addiction, deceit, disaffection, violence, adultery, and we can each complete our personal list. David Mamet, National Review, 3 Mar. 2022 Each plot builds upon certain themes (often including family, addiction, adultery, forgiveness, and healing), but the storylines are clunky without actually being effective because they’re overburdened by drama. Ineye Komonibo, refinery29.com, 1 Mar. 2022 The Taliban previously has imposed harsh penalties, including death sentences, for infractions linked to adultery, blasphemy, non-compliance with dress codes, working with the U.S. government and more. Kiara Alfonseca, ABC News, 22 Aug. 2021 See More Word History Etymology Middle English adultrye, adultery, alteration (conformed to Latin adulterium) of avoutrie, advoutrie, alteration (with addition of suffix -ie -y entry 2) of avoutre, borrowed from Anglo-French avulteire, avouteire, going back to Latin adulterium, from adulterāre "to defile by adultery, commit adultery with, pollute" + -ium deverbal noun suffix — more at adulterate entry 1 First Known Use 15th century, in the meaning defined above Legal Definition adultery noun adul·tery ə-ˈdəl-tə-rē : voluntary sexual activity (as sexual intercourse) between a married man and someone other than his wife or between a married woman and someone other than her husband also : the crime of adultery compare fornication adultery noun as in cheating a sexual encounter or relationship between a married person and someone other than their spouse adultery is the cause of many divorces Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance cheating misconduct infidelity treachery unfaithfulness affair affaire romance promiscuity two-timing disloyalty faithlessness love perfidy intrigue inconstancy criminal conversation perfidiousness infatuation falseness flirtation amour fling free love entanglement love affair attachment liaison passion Antonyms & Near Antonyms fidelity faithfulness devotion loyalty dedication allegiance constancy devotedness steadfastness fealty See More
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adultery

noun

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

Legal Definition

noun

noun