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fornication

American  
[fawr-ni-key-shuhn] / ˌfɔr nɪˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

  1. voluntary sexual intercourse between two unmarried persons or two persons not married to each other.

  2. Bible. idolatry.

fornication British  
/ ˌfɔːnɪˈkeɪʃən /

noun

  1. voluntary sexual intercourse outside marriage

  2. law voluntary sexual intercourse between two persons of the opposite sex, where one is or both are unmarried

  3. Bible sexual immorality in general, esp adultery

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • fornicatory adjective

Etymology

Origin of fornication

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English fornicacioun, from Late Latin fornicātiōn-, stem of fornicātiō; equivalent to fornicate 1 + -ion

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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.