monogamist
Americannoun
noun
Usage
What does monogamist mean? A monogamist is someone who practices or advocates for monogamy—the state or practice of being married to only one person at a time or being in a romantic or sexual relationship with only one person at a time. The phrase serial monogamist refers to a person who engages in what’s called serial monogamy—the practice of being married several times in succession, or, more popularly, going from one monogamous long-term relationship to another. Example: I don’t know how people have the energy or patience to date multiple people at once—it’s hard enough being a monogamist.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of monogamist
First recorded in 1645–50; monogam(y) + -ist
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 Bolter’ In the novels of the British writer Nancy Mitford, it’s a nickname given to the narrator’s mother, a serial monogamist who cycles through relationships.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 19, 2024
A self-professed serial monogamist, he lives alone, but his girlfriend lives next door, and is fully on board with his cause.
From New York Times ● Nov. 23, 2022
The serial monogamist seeks a lost paradise pathologically, in a series of echoes, in diminishing returns.
From Salon ● Dec. 25, 2021
Did you say he was or wasn’t a serial monogamist?
From The New Yorker ● Aug. 23, 2019
I may be a radical monogamist and a rash enthusiast upon this matter, but I still adhere to my original motto, one country, one flag and one wife at a time.
From Remarks by Nye, Bill
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.
