polygynous
/pəˈlɪd͡ʒɪnəs/adjective
polygynous is spelled P-O-L-Y-G-Y-N-O-U-S: 10 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 23 million words in written English, the 145,125th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, polygynous means “Having many styles; belonging to the order Polygynia” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in polygynous?
| Letters | 10: P-O-L-Y-G-Y-N-O-U-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 23 million words; the 145,125th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is polygynous?
Polygynous appears about once in every 23 million words in written English, the 145,125th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce polygynous?
- /pəˈlɪd͡ʒɪnəs/
Polygynous has 4 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does polygynous mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Having many styles; belonging to the order Polygynia.
- 2
Having more than one female as wife or mate; practicing polygyny.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Polygynous in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense practicing polygyny:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | polygyne |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does polygynous come from?
From polygyny + -ous.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).