Involving romantic or sexual relations between a married person and someone other than their spouse.
From Latin 'adulterare' meaning 'to corrupt' or 'to contaminate,' from 'ad-' (to) and 'alter' (other). The root suggests mixing or corrupting what should be pure.
Adultery appears in some of humanity's oldest written laws and religious texts—it's one of the few words that reveals how societies have long been concerned with defining and controlling relationships, showing that commitment conflicts are ancient human struggles.
Historically applied asymmetrically to women; female adultery was capital crime while male adultery often unpunished. Legal codes encoded different moral standards by gender, with women's sexuality treated as male property violation.
Use 'adulterous' neutrally for any gender. When discussing history, specify gendered enforcement: 'women were prosecuted for adultery while men faced minimal consequences.'
["unfaithful","disloyal","having committed infidelity"]
Women executed for adultery while men retained social standing reveals how the term enforced patriarchal control over women's bodies and sexuality.
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