polygamy

/pəˈlɪɡ.ə.mi/

//pəˈlɪɡ.ə.mi// noun

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

"polygamy" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“polygamy” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #26,555. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#26,555
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
13
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The condition of having more than one spouse or marriage partner at one time.

Corpus desk

Index EN-polygamy · polygamy · English

polygamy · rank #26,555 · 13 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #26,555
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH polluting

Nearest frequency peer: polluting (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “polygamy”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “polygamy” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for polygamy
PropertyValue
Headwordpolygamy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/pəˈlɪɡ.ə.mi/
Letters8
Frequency rank#26,555
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “polygamy”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).polygamylands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “polluting” (#26,554), “ponytail” (#26,556), “planar” (#26,553). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “polygamy” is #26,555. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around polygamy (IPA /pəˈlɪɡ.ə.mi/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #26,555 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for polygamy, with forms such as "oplygamy", "ploygamy", and "polgyamy". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: Recorded since 1591, from Late Latin polygamia, from Ancient Greek πολυγαμία (polugamía), itself from πολύγαμος (polúgamos, “married to many”), from πολύς (polús, “many”) + γάμος (gámos, “marriage”). Relates to modern prefix and suffix poly- + -gamy. The correct English form is polygamy, spelled P-O-L-Y-G-A-M-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    The condition of having more than one spouse or marriage partner at one time.
  2. 2
    Synonym of polygyny (“marriage of a man to more than one wife, the practice of having several wives at the same time”).
  3. 3
    The state or habit of having more than one sexual mate.
  4. 4
    The condition or state of a plant which bears both perfect and unisexual flowers.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Are there countries where polygamy is legal for both men and women?
  2. Miss Griffin was a model of propriety, and I am at a loss to imagine what the feelings of the virtuous woman would have been, if she had known, when she paraded us down the Hampstead Road two and two, that she was walking with a stately step at the head of Polygamy and Mahomedanism.

Etymology

Recorded since 1591, from Late Latin polygamia, from Ancient Greek πολυγαμία (polugamía), itself from πολύγαμος (polúgamos, “married to many”), from πολύς (polús, “many”) + γάμος (gámos, “marriage”). Relates to modern prefix and suffix poly- + -gamy.

This word in other languages

poligamia(Español)polygamie(Français)Polygamie(Deutsch)poligamia(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • oplygamy
  • ploygamy
  • polgyamy
  • pollygamy
  • polyagmy
  • polygammy
  • polygamyy
  • polygaym
  • polyggamy
  • polygmay
  • polyygamy
  • poylgamy
  • ppolygamy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of polygamy - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

oplygamy2ploygamy2polgyamy2pollygamy1polyagmy2polygammy1polygamyy1polygaym2
Edit distance from "polygamy"

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 "polygamy"?
"polygamy" is spelled P-O-L-Y-G-A-M-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /pəˈlɪɡ.ə.mi/.
What does "polygamy" mean?
As a noun, "polygamy" means: The condition of having more than one spouse or marriage partner at one time.
What are common misspellings of "polygamy"?
Common misspellings include "oplygamy", "ploygamy", "polgyamy", "pollygamy", "polyagmy". The correct spelling is "polygamy".
How do you pronounce "polygamy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "polygamy" is /pəˈlɪɡ.ə.mi/. 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 "polygamy"?
Recorded since 1591, from Late Latin polygamia, from Ancient Greek πολυγαμία (polugamía), itself from πολύγαμος (polúgamos, “married to many”), from πολύς (polús, “many”) + γάμος (gámos, “marriage”). Relates to modern prefix and suffix poly- + -gamy. 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 "polygamy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

ponytail#26,556penchant#26,551Pembroke#26,550Pacquiao#26,543

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (13 here; floor ≥5).

scheming13 variantsScotsman13 variantsslashing13 variantssociopath13 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list