adultery
noun
Did you know?
What’s the difference between adultery and fornication?
In case you were wondering, the words adultery and adult are not etymologically related (in other words, adultery didn’t grow out of adult in the way that punditry grew out of pundit). Although both words come from Latin and share the same first five letters, adultery is from adulterāre (“to pollute, defile, commit adultery”), a word formed ultimately from the Latin elements ad- “to, near” and alter “other.” English adult comes from adultus, which is the past participle of the Latin word adolescere (“to grow up”).
In legal use there is a difference between adultery and fornication. Adultery is only used when at least one of the parties involved (either male or female) is married, whereas fornication may be used to describe two people who are unmarried (to each other or anyone else) engaging in consensual sexual intercourse.
Examples of adultery in a Sentence
James Powel, USA TODAY, 9 Mar. 2025
Under Taliban rule, morality laws are strictly enforced, and activities considered immoral or against Islamic principles—such as pornography, adultery, or LGBTQ+ content—are harshly punished.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 28 Feb. 2025
Discrimination, lying, adultery, name -calling, belittling others, punching people and ignoring the poor, sick and elderly are now the accepted values of those who were concerned about the nation’s moral decline.
—Contributed Content, Twin Cities, 8 Feb. 2025
At the time of the case, Bryant admitted to adultery with a 19-year-old resort hotel worker in Colorado but denied the rape allegations, always maintaining that the encounter was consensual.
—George Ramsay, CNN, 8 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for adultery
Articles Related to adultery
Cite this Entry
“Adultery.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adultery. Accessed 17 Mar. 2025.
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adultery
noun
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adultery
noun
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