paramour
Americannoun
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an illicit lover, especially of a married person.
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any lover.
noun
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derogatory a lover, esp an adulterous woman
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an archaic word for beloved
Etymology
Origin of paramour
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from the phrase par amour “by love, through love,” from Old French par “by, through” (from Latin per per ( def. ) ) + amo(u)r “love” ( amour ( def. ) )
Explanation
A paramour is a lover, and often a secret one you're not married to. So it's best not to kiss and make eyes at your paramour in public, unless you want to be the center of a lot of gossip. The noun paramour evolved from the French phrase par amour, meaning “passionately” or “with desire.” If you break it down, you get par, meaning "by," and amour, the French word for love. Once upon a time, women used this word to describe Christ, and men would use it to refer to the Virgin Mary. But eventually, paramour shed its religious connotations and came to mean “darling” or “sweetheart,” and later “mistress” or “clandestine lover.”
Vocabulary lists containing paramour
All You Need is Love: Amor and Phil
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A Midsummer Night's Dream
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"The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet," Vocabulary from Act 5
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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.
Early in McMurtry’s career, a paramour gave him a sweatshirt that read “Minor Regional Novelist.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026
Miss Piggy, her paramour Kermit the Frog, Gonzo, and Fozzie have reunited for the one-off show to mark its 50th birthday, after their beloved film outings such as Muppet Christmas Carol.
From BBC • Feb. 4, 2026
Often, a Housewife will end one season in a promising new relationship, only for their paramour to be cut loose by the next, when new romances blossom alongside fresh opening taglines.
From Salon • May 5, 2025
Cher wore the bathing suit of Natalie Wood, Beatty’s paramour and co-star in “Splendor in the Grass.”
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 19, 2024
He went in to the King, my grandfather, and demanded that my mother break olT the engagement with her paramour.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson
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.
