If someone is promiscuous, what does that mean? This article will teach you all about the meaning of promiscuous and how to use it.
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Kevin
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April 11, 2022
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Have you or someone you know ever been described as promiscuous? If so, do you know what it means? Promiscuous isn’t just the name of one of Nelly Furtado’s best songs, after all!
Keep reading to learn all about the definition of promiscuous and how to use it in a sentence. Afterward, this article will teach you about the origin of the word promiscuous, synonyms and antonyms of promiscuous, and translations of the word promiscuous.
What Does Promiscuous Mean?
According to Dictionary, promiscuous is an adjective that refers to someone who has many sexual partners or sexual relationships. The pronunciation of promiscuous is prəˈmɪskjʊəs, and the word promiscuous has four syllables: pro-misc-u-ous. The adverb form of the word promiscuous is promiscuously.
Commonly, the word promiscuous can also mean indiscriminate, irregular, or made up of elements or parts of different kinds without any semblance of order. However, the other definition of promiscuous is far more common. If someone calls you promiscuous, you can assume that they are implying that you have many sexual partners.
How Can Promiscuous Be Used in a Sentence?
The word promiscuous is fairly common. This word is more professional or formal than some synonyms of promiscuous, but it is not considered overly formal. Take a look at the below example sentences using this word of the day, then try to use it in a sentence of your own!
Example #1: The Promiscuous Men and Women
The promiscuous women were judged for their sexual relationships, but they did not let it phase them. Why is it that promiscuous men are not judged for their sexual behavior, but women are?
Question: Who is judged for their promiscuity? Who is not?
Answer: The women are judged for their promiscuity. The men are not judged.
Example #2: Approving of Promiscuity
His mother disapproved of his choice of sexual partners and felt that promiscuous sex would lead to disease and pregnancy.
Question: Who did not approve of the man’s promiscuity?
Answer: The man’s mother did not approve of his promiscuity.
Example #3: Waning Promiscuity
She had many sexual relations in her younger years, but she found this promiscuous lifestyle exhausting as she grew older.
Question: Did her promiscuity increase or decrease as she grew older?
Answer: Her promiscuity decreased as she grew older.
Example #4: The Promiscuous Song
The singer released a new single that celebrated her promiscuity. It got mixed reviews because the older generation did not approve of her frequent sexual relations, but the younger generation lauded her for being open about sex.
Question: Which generation approved of the singer’s promiscuous song?
Answer: The younger generation approved of the song, and the older generation did not approve of the song.
What is the Etymology of Promiscuous?
Dictionary states that the word promiscuous was first used in the late 1500s and the early 1600s. The word promiscuous comes from Latin prōmiscuus which means “mixed up.” This comes from the Latin prefix pro, the Latin root miscēre, and the Latin adjective suffix uus.
What Are Translations of Promiscuous?
People can be promiscuous all over the world! If you are trying to learn how to talk about someone who is promiscuous in another language, you can use this list of translations from Nice Translator. Expanding your knowledge of words beyond the English language is a great way to connect with more people.
- Chinese (Taiwan): 淫亂
- Tamil: அறிவார்ந்த
- Amharic: ሴሰኛ
- Czech: promiskuitní
- Gujarati: અનિચ્છાવાળું
- Urdu: پروموشن
- Serbian: промискуитан
- Spanish: promiscuo
- Korean: 난잡한
- Greek: σύμμικτος
- Romanian: promiscuu
- Malay: ramuan
- Thai: สำส่อน
- Swedish: promiskuös
- French: prospugé
- Croatian: promiskuitetan
- Bulgarian: безразборни
- Basque: aginduez
- Dutch: promiscue
- Welsh: anwirach
- Lithuanian: Nuostabus.
- Slovenian: promiskuitet.
- Chinese (PRC): 淫乱
- Italian: promiscuo
- Telugu: సంక్లిష్టత
- Portuguese (Brazil): promíscuo
- Polish: bezładny
- Marathi: विचित्र
- Latvian: juceklīgs
- Arabic: مختلط
- Ukrainian: безладний
- Vietnamese: lăng nhăng.
- Turkish: acımasız
- Japanese: 妄想
- Swahili: uasherati
- Slovak: promiskuitný
- Hebrew: מוּפקָר
- Catalan: promiscu
- Hindi: अनेक
- Finnish: siveetön
- Russian: непосредственно
- Norwegian: promiskuøs
- Hungarian: kuszált
- German: Promiscuous
- Danish: løs på tråden
- Kannada: ಸ್ವಚ್ಛಂದದ
- Malayalam: നിര്ദ്ദ
- Portuguese (Portugal): promíscuo
- Indonesian: kacau
- Estonian: lubamatu
What Are Synonyms of Promiscuous?
If you are looking for a word with a different connotation than promiscuous but the same meaning, study the below word list from Power Thesaurus.
- assorted
- careless
- casual
- confused
- debauched
- dissipated
- dissolute
- easy
- easygoing
- fast
- haphazard
- heterogeneous
- immoral
- indecent
- indiscriminate
- irresponsible
- lascivious
- lecherous
- lewd
- libertine
- libidinous
- licentious
- light
- loose
- lustful
- mingled
- miscellaneous
- mixed
- profligate
- random
- sexually indiscriminate
- sinful
- unchaste
- uncritical
- undiscriminating
- unselective
- wanton
- wild
What Are Antonyms of Promiscuous?
If someone is not promiscuous, they do not have many sexual relations or sexual partners. There are many ways to describe someone who is not promiscuous listed below from Power Thesaurus. Do you know anyone that you would describe as the opposite of promiscuous?
- abstemious
- abstinent
- austere
- bare
- celibate
- chaste
- continent
- decorous
- immaculate
- innocent
- maidenly
- modest
- plain
- platonic
- pristine
- proper
- severe
- simple
- sinless
- spotless
- stainless
- unadorned
- upright
- vestal
- virgin
- virginal
- virtuous
- wholesome
Conclusion
The word promiscuous (prəˈmɪskjuəs) is an adjective that usually describes a person who has a high number of sexual partners, often on a casual basis. The word promiscuous less often refers to something that is made of many different parts or elements that have been brought together in no order, haphazardly, or indiscriminately.
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