infidelity
Americannoun
-
infidelities
plural
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marital disloyalty; adultery.
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unfaithfulness; disloyalty.
-
lack of religious faith, especially Christian faith.
-
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
Noun Inflected 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.
See Examples For:
There’s a big problem when one man’s infidelity can tank the stock market, but Steffi Cao zeroes in on another issue that this scandal has revealed.
From Slate ● Nov. 11, 2026
Jensen Huang apologized to Nvidia staff for his infidelity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 11, 2026
The podcast’s indefinite hiatus comes shortly after Hila accused her husband of infidelity on her own Instagram account late Thursday night.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
More recently, his marriage collapsed amid allegations of infidelity, while fresh reporting has raised questions about his relationships with wealthy donors and businessmen.
From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026
Jean-Paul’s infidelity is just a phase, says Simone, so she never lets it faze her. fewer/less.
From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner
One venture capitalist told AFP that the fallout from Huang's infidelities was accelerating a correction that had already been underway.
From Barron's ● Nov. 13, 2026
Those changes go beyond the obvious problems of Huang’s infidelities, and demand a less-imperial approach to leadership.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 12, 2026
Melania Trump has in the past been sensitive to discussions of Trump’s infidelities.
From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026
Firstly from her husband, with the infidelities, I think she created such a thick skin over time.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2024
His laughing with Kainene, telling Kainene about Aunt Elizabeth, watching Kainene smoke, surely had to be infidelities; they felt so.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
