# polygyny

> English word · Noun · IPA /pəˈlɪd͡ʒ.ɪ.ni/ · frequency rank #96,367

## Definitions
1. The state or practice of having several wives at the same time; plurality of wives; marriage to several wives.
2. The condition of an ant colony that has multiple egg-laying queens.
3. Synonym of polygamy.

## Etymology
From Ancient Greek πολύ (polú, “many”) + γυνή (gunḗ, “woman, wife”). By surface analysis, poly- + -gyny.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/polygyny