concubine

American  

[kong-kyuh-bahyn, kon-] / ˈkɒŋ kyəˌbaɪn, ˈkɒn- /

noun

1. a woman who cohabits with a man to whom she is not legally married, especially one regarded as socially or sexually subservient; mistress.

2. (among polygamous peoples) a secondary wife, usually of inferior rank.

3. (especially formerly in Muslim societies) a woman residing in a harem and kept, as by a sultan, for sexual purposes.

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concubine British  

/ ˈkɒn-, ˈkɒŋkjʊˌbaɪn, kɒŋˈkjʊbɪnərɪ /

noun

1. (in polygamous societies) a secondary wife, usually of lower social rank

2. a woman who cohabits with a man

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Other Word Forms

• concubinary noun

Etymology

Origin of concubine

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin concubīna, equivalent to concub- (variant stem of concumbere “to lie together”; con-, incumbent ) + -īna, feminine suffix

Example Sentences

As the choreographer read about this eccentric ruler — a gifted athlete with extravagant appetites and wives, kids, concubines and Rolls-Royces galore, who died in his 40s — a production took shape in his mind.

From Washington Post

Local myth says they represent a man who couldn’t choose between his wife and concubine, so all three of them were petrified.

From New York Times

Drawing together decades of writing, these stories follow concubines who fall in love, paranormal researchers and an older man forced to confront his past.

From New York Times

But Bracton does have a lot to say about monsters, duels, bastardy, concubines, sturgeon “and other royal fish,” the “pillory and the ducking-stool," and "a judgment with infamy.”

From Washington Post

The 18th-century monarch liked to nosh on the eggs of water monitor lizards, so the story goes, but the concubine couldn’t get her hands on any, so she substituted dough stuffed with sweet bean paste.

From New York Times

Related Words

• mistress