bigamy
Americannoun
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Law. the crime of marrying while one has a spouse still living, from whom no valid divorce has been effected.
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Ecclesiastical. any violation of canon law concerning marital status that would disqualify a person from receiving holy orders or from retaining or surpassing an ecclesiastical rank.
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of bigamy
1200–50; Middle English bigamie < Medieval Latin bigamia ( Late Latin bigam ( us ) bigamous + Latin -ia -y 3 )
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Explanation
When you are married to two people at the same time, that’s called bigamy. For example, if someone gets remarried before his or her previous marriage's divorce is finalized, that's bigamy. The noun bigamy originates in the Greek as a combination of the prefix bi-, meaning “double,” and gamos, which means “marrying.” There are some cultures and religions that promote, encourage and otherwise allow polygamy, but where it’s illegal, which is most of the Western Hemisphere, it’s called bigamy.
Vocabulary lists containing bigamy
It Takes Two: Bi
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Frankenwords: Words with Roots from Different Languages
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: bi-
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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.
The state bigamy law won’t necessarily bar West Hollywood from registering relationships inside its two-mile-square borders.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 25, 2026
A man who admitted to the "cruel deception" of bigamy has been handed a suspended jail term and placed on curfew.
From BBC • Nov. 29, 2023
Circuit Court of Appeals panel ordered the Mississippi secretary of state to stop enforcing a provision in the state constitution that disenfranchises people convicted of specific crimes, including murder, forgery and bigamy.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 4, 2023
Eight crimes listed in the 1890 version of the provision - bribery, theft, arson, obtaining money or goods under false pretense, perjury, forgery, embezzlement and bigamy - remain as disqualifying offenses today.
From Reuters • Jun. 30, 2023
Rachel’s divorce had not been legally granted at the time of their wedding, so Rachel Robards was still married to her first husband when she married Andrew Jackson, a crime known as bigamy.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
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.
