updates | May 30, 2026

What is it called when a man has more than 1 wife?

Polygamy usually takes the form of polygyny – when a man marries multiple women. Polyandry, which refers to wives having more than one husband, is even rarer than polygamy and mostly documented among small and relatively isolated communities around the world.

What is a polygamous person?

Polygamy is the practice of marrying more than one person, whereas polyamory means having multiple relations while being married (or not married) to one person.

Can I have two husbands?

If a marriage involves a plural number of “husbands and wives” participants of each gender, then it can be called polygamy, group or conjoint marriage. In its broadest use, polyandry refers to sexual relations with multiple males within or without marriage.

What is a second marriage called?

— deuterogamous, adj. digamism, digamy. a second legal marriage after the termination of a first marriage by death or divorce. Also called deuterogamy.

What is it called when a man has a wife and a girlfriend?

These people practice polyamory, or the practice of having multiple romantic relationships. In those communities, men marry multiple women, while in polyamory, both genders have the opportunity to explore connections with other people.

Where is it legal to have 2 husbands?

In every country in North America and South America, polygamy is illegal, and practice is criminalized. In the United States, polygamy is illegal in all 50 states; however, in February 2020, the Utah House and Senate reduced punishment for polygamy to the status of a traffic ticket.

Why is a wife called a wife?

The word is of Germanic origin, from Proto-Germanic *wībam, “woman”. The original meaning of the phrase “wife” as simply “woman”, unconnected with marriage or a husband/wife, is preserved in words such as “midwife”, “goodwife”, “fishwife” and “spaewife”.

What do you call a man who dates a married man?

“Adulterer” (or “adulteress”) can be used for anyone who has a sexual relationship with a person who is married to another, but again does not always imply the specific social situational that “mistress” does.

What religion allows multiple wives?

Today, various denominations of fundamentalist Mormonism continue to practice polygamy. The Latter-day Saints’ practice of polygamy has been controversial, both within Western society and the LDS Church itself.

Is it illegal to have two husbands?

United States. Polygamy is the act or condition of a person marrying another person while still being lawfully married to another spouse. It is illegal in the United States. The crime is punishable by a fine, imprisonment, or both, according to the law of the individual state and the circumstances of the offense.

What is short form of wife?

Definition. WIFE. Women’s Institute for Financial Education. WIFE. Wonderful Instrument for Enjoyment.