infidelity
Americannoun
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marital disloyalty; adultery.
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unfaithfulness; disloyalty.
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lack of religious faith, especially Christian faith.
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a breach of trust or a disloyal act; transgression.
noun
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lack of faith or constancy, esp sexual faithfulness
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lack of religious faith; disbelief
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an act or instance of disloyalty
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of infidelity
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin infidēlitās; equivalent to infidel + -ity
Explanation
Someone guilty of infidelity is cheating on a spouse or romantic partner. A common cause of divorce and heartbreak is infidelity. Fidel means "faithful" or "loyal." Tack on the prefix in, which means "not," and you've got yourself infidelity — the act of being unfaithful. The word can also be used to refer to someone's religious beliefs. Run angrily through a church and claim that God doesn't exist, and your fellow churchgoers will think you lack faith, or that you are guilty of infidelity.
Vocabulary lists containing infidelity
George Washington's Farewell Address (1796)
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The Woman Warrior
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
And on April 29, she played "High Infidelity," which features the much-probed lyrics: "Do you really want to know where I was April 29th?"
From Salon • Oct. 13, 2023
Deadly Infidelity Awakening from a monthlong coma, a woman has lost the last five years of memories of her husband and daughter.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 1, 2022
In the vein of “physician, heal thyself,” Hannah and her sisters — oh, hey — and mother aren’t doing that well in the marriage and romance departments: Infidelity and insecurity abound.
From New York Times • Jan. 10, 2019
“No! That is like going into my fears. It’s because I’m such a romantic. Infidelity breaks my heart. That’s why I write about it, because I’m obsessed with it.”
From The Guardian • Sep. 8, 2018
I never saw him read a second of time in Dr. Smith's book on Infidelity.
From Abraham Lincoln: Was He A Christian? by Remsburg, John B.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
