polygamy
Americannoun
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the practice or condition of having more than one spouse, especially wife, at one time.
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Zoology. the habit or system of mating with more than one individual, either simultaneously or successively.
noun
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the practice of having more than one wife or husband at the same time Compare polyandry polygyny
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the condition of having male, female, and hermaphrodite flowers on the same plant
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the condition of having these different types of flower on separate plants of the same species
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the practice in male animals of having more than one mate during one breeding season
Other Word Forms
- polygamist noun
- polygamous adjective
- polygamously adverb
Etymology
Origin of polygamy
From the Greek word polygamía, dating back to 1585–95. See poly-, -gamy
Compare meaning
How does polygamy compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
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.
Some reports said they had converted to Islam, which allows polygamy, to marry - a claim Dharmendra later denied.
From BBC • Nov. 24, 2025
Overall, the differences were smallest in monogamous species, while polygamy and pronounced size differences were associated with a more pronounced advantage for females.
From Science Daily • Oct. 28, 2025
The DNA also revealed polygamy and “levirate unions,” in which closely related males—brothers, or a father and son—had children with the same woman.
From Science Magazine • Apr. 24, 2024
The new law bans polygamy and sets a uniform age for marriage for men and women — 21 and 18, respectively — across all religions and also includes a uniform process for divorce.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 7, 2024
The church had ended the temporal practice of polygamy in 1890, but it had never recanted the doctrine.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
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.
