monogamous

adjective

mo·​nog·​a·​mous mə-ˈnä-gə-məs 

variants or less commonly monogamic

ˌmä-nə-ˈga-mik 

: relating to, characterized by, or practicing monogamy : having only one mate, spouse, or sexual partner at one time

… the beaver has several qualities that endear it to people: it is monogamous and lives in a family unit; it is gentle and clean; it is absolutely industrious.

—Doug Hand

But for women who are not at risk for STDs because they are in mutually monogamous relationships, modern IUDs can be safe and very effective.

—Kim Painter

There are many kinds of infidelity, but here we are talking about a sexual infidelity in monogamous marriage or a relationship that is tantamount to marriage.

—Frank Pittman

monogamously adverb

Pairs usually mate monogamously for life …

—Vincenzo Penteriani et al.

Did you know?

What is the Difference Between monogamous and Polygamous?

American marriage is by law monogamous; people are permitted to have only one spouse at a time. There are cultures with laws that permit marriage to more than one person at a time, or polygamy. Although the term polygamy may refer to polyandry (marriage to more than one man), it is more often used as a synonym for polygyny (marriage to more than one woman), which appears to have once been common in most of the world and is still found widely in some cultures.

Examples of monogamous in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Takahe are monogamous, forming long-term pair bonds, and raise a single chick per season, carefully guarding their nests hidden in dense vegetation. —Scott Travers, Forbes, 22 Dec. 2024

Few monogamous couples, that is, get down to the brass tacks of chalking the contours—or, rather, the borders—of their coupledom, including those inclined to discuss their transition to exclusivity. —Lauren Michele Jackson, The New Yorker, 18 Dec. 2024

Rainfall is associated with divorce in the socially monogamous Seychelles warbler. —Dan Perry, Newsweek, 26 Nov. 2024

Maggie seemed to be a serial monogamist—someone who moves from one long-term monogamous relationship to another with very little time for herself in between. —Mark Travers, Forbes, 25 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1770, in the meaning defined above