Saturday, July 30, 2011

Digamy!


Digamy \DI-deh-mi\ (noun) - A second marriage after a divorce or the passing of a spouse, deuterogamy.
"All my friends become digamous so fast, it is difficult to say that that none are bigamous."

Bigamy is marriage to two spouses simultaneously; digamy is marriage to two spouses in succession. Polygamy is marriage to several partners simultaneously"polygyny" refers to having several wives while "polyandry" refers to having several husbands. The adjective for today's noun is "digamous" and sounds like "bigamous." From Greek digamia "marriage twice" based on dis "twice" + gamos "marriage." The synonym of today's word, "deuterogamy," comes from Greek deuteros "second" + "gamos" and is related to the name of the fifth book of the Bible, Deuteronomy from Greek deuteronomion "second law" from deuteros "second" + nom- "law."

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