polygynous
Americanadjective
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of, pertaining to, characterized by, or practicing polygyny.
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Botany. having many pistils or styles.
Etymology
Origin of polygynous
First recorded in 1840–50; polygyn(y) + -ous
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.
A similar shift appears in some wolf and fox species, which practice forms of social monogamy and cooperative care, even though their ancestral canids were likely group-living and polygynous.
From Science Daily • Jan. 22, 2026
Darras notes that yellow crazy ants are polygynous, meaning they have multiple queens — in some cases their reproductive capabilities are essentially limitless.
From Salon • Jul. 24, 2023
Germans were also often polygynous; men might have multiple wives at once and be able to divorce at will, while women’s options were severely limited.
From Textbooks • Apr. 19, 2023
Competition for females is tough among these polygynous birds, and those who settle down in a single spot had little chance of copulation.
From The Guardian • Jan. 9, 2017
While polygyny has been claimed to be due entirely to economic causes, we have seen that these so-called economic causes have only been the opportunities for the polygynous instincts of man to assert themselves.
From Sociology and Modern Social Problems by Ellwood, Charles A. (Charles Abram)
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.
