polygyny
pronunciation
How to pronounce polygyny in British English:
UK [pə'lɪdʒənɪ]
How to pronounce polygyny in American English:
US [pə'lɪdʒənɪ]
-
- Noun:
- having more than one wife at a time
Word Origin
- polygyny (n.)
- 1780, "condition of having many wives," from poly- "many" (see poly-) + Greek gyne "woman, wife" (see queen). Related: Polygynous.
Example
- 1. Most women benefit from polygyny , while most men benefit from monogamy
- 2. So polygyny increases competitive pressure on men , especially young men of low status .
- 3. Among primate and nonprimate species , the degree of polygyny highly correlates with the degree to which males of a species are larger than females .
- 4. From ancient polygyny to the free love of the 1970s to the polyamorists of today , a peek inside the hidden world of multi-partner relationships .
- 5. Dr clutton-brock reckons that the sex difference in both human rates of ageing and in the usual age of death is an indicator that polygyny was the rule in humanity 's evolutionary past-as it still is , in some places .