bigamy

/ˈbɪɡəmi/

//ˈbɪɡəmi// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"bigamy" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“bigamy” is uncommon English (frequency #59,901 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#59,901
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The state of having two (legal or illegal) spouses simultaneously.

Corpus desk

Index EN-bigamy · bigamy · English

bigamy · rank #59,901 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #59,901
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH biddy

Nearest frequency peer: biddy (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “bigamy”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “bigamy” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for bigamy
PropertyValue
Headwordbigamy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbɪɡəmi/
Letters6
Frequency rank#59,901
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “bigamy” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).bigamyfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “biddy” (#59,900), “Billingsley” (#59,902), “Binks” (#59,903). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bigamy” is #59,901. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

bigamy is uncommon English at frequency #59,901 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈbɪɡəmi/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for bigamy, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our dataset records no confusable match here, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English bigamie (“having two spouses simultaneously, bigamy; second marriage; marrying a widow or widower”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman bigamie and Middle French bigamie (“having two spouses simultaneously; second marriage; marrying a w… The correct English form is bigamy, spelled B-I-G-A-M-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    The state of having two (legal or illegal) spouses simultaneously.
  2. 2
    A second marriage after the death of a spouse.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how bigamy appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. But now we may find in S. Margarets life, who it is that is Chriſtes wife: whereby we are ſo much wiſer than we were before. But looke in the life of S. Katharine, in the golden legend, and you ſhall find that he was alſo married to S. Katharine, and that our ladie made the marriage, &c. An excellent authoritie for bigamie.
  2. A beauty-waining and diſtreſſed widow [Elizabeth Woodville], / Euen in the afternoone of her beſt daies / Made priſe and purchaſe of his [Edward IV's] luſtfull eye, / Seduct the pitch and height of al his thoughts, / To baſe declenſion and loathd bigamie, / By her in his vnlawfull bed he got.

Etymology

From Middle English bigamie (“having two spouses simultaneously, bigamy; second marriage; marrying a widow or widower”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman bigamie and Middle French bigamie (“having two spouses simultaneously; second marriage; marrying a widow or widower”) (modern French bigamie (“bigamy”)), and its etymon Late Latin bigamia (“having two spouses simultaneously; second marriage”), from Late Latin, Latin bigamus (“bigamous”) + -ia (variant of -ius (suffix forming adjectives from nouns)). Bigamus is derived from bis (“twice, two times”) + Ancient Greek γάμος (gámos, “marriage; matrimony”) (from Proto-Indo-European *ǵem- (“to marry”)). The English word is analysable as bi- + -gamy.

This word in other languages

bigamia(Español)bigamie(Français)Bigamie(Deutsch)bigamia(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "bigamy"?
"bigamy" is spelled B-I-G-A-M-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbɪɡəmi/.
What does "bigamy" mean?
As a noun, "bigamy" means: The state of having two (legal or illegal) spouses simultaneously.
How do you pronounce "bigamy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bigamy" is /ˈbɪɡəmi/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "bigamy"?
From Middle English bigamie (“having two spouses simultaneously, bigamy; second marriage; marrying a widow or widower”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman bigamie and Middle French bigamie (“having two spouses simultaneously; second marriage; ma... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "bigamy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Bolger#59,909beckon#59,887Bayeux#59,885basher#59,880

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list