Plural of harlotry; multiple instances or acts of prostitution or sexual immorality; sometimes used figuratively for betrayal or infidelity.
From harlot + -ry suffix (indicating practice or condition) + -ies plural. Harlot comes from Old French harlote, origin uncertain but possibly from Germanic roots.
Biblical and medieval texts use 'harlotries' as moral condemnation, but the word reveals gender bias—male soldiers with camp followers weren't condemned the same way, showing how language has historically encoded double standards into vocabulary itself.
Harlot historically denoted specifically female sex workers; male equivalents (knave, rogue) carried less stigma. This gendered language pathologized women's sexuality while male transgressions were framed as vice rather than moral failing.
When discussing sex work or transactional sexual relationships, use gender-neutral terms like 'sex worker' or refer to behavior ('prostitution') rather than identity labels that historically targeted women.
["sex work","transactional sexual relationship","prostitution"]
Historical reclamation by sex worker rights movements has reframed terminology; contemporary usage should center worker agency and avoid gendered moral judgment.
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