as in extramarital
relating to or being a sexual encounter or relationship between a married person and someone other than their spouse
had an adulterous affair that nearly destroyed his marriage
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Recent Examples of adulterous
In the months since the incident unfolded at Gillette Stadium, the public — which was quick to discover that Cabot worked as an HR executive under Byron, and that both were married to other people at the time — has been quick to brand the pair as adulterous villains.
—
Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 18 Dec. 2025
The supernatural thriller sees a woman return from death as a vindictive spirit to torment her adulterous husband.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 26 June 2025
But with a twist so big — Sarah being the killer of her adulterous husband Adam’s mistress, Kelly Summers, and the one who set him up for the murder while simultaneously defending him tooth and nail in court — where was Rose to go after that?
—Jennifer Maas, Variety, 29 Apr. 2025
Nor did anyone blink when Shonda Rhimes set Scandal within the White House of a wishy-washy, adulterous GOP President who’d unwittingly stolen an election.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for adulterous
Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 18 Dec. 2025
The supernatural thriller sees a woman return from death as a vindictive spirit to torment her adulterous husband.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 26 June 2025
But with a twist so big — Sarah being the killer of her adulterous husband Adam’s mistress, Kelly Summers, and the one who set him up for the murder while simultaneously defending him tooth and nail in court — where was Rose to go after that?
—Jennifer Maas, Variety, 29 Apr. 2025
Nor did anyone blink when Shonda Rhimes set Scandal within the White House of a wishy-washy, adulterous GOP President who’d unwittingly stolen an election.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for adulterous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for adulterous
Adjective
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The latest Epstein documents include a series of emails that Epstein sent to himself in 2013, appearing to suggest that Gates was having an extramarital affair and seeking illicit drugs.—
David Ingram,
NBC news,
5 Feb. 2026
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Files released by the Justice Department last week show Epstein had drafted notes to and about the billionaire, suggesting Gates had engaged in extramarital affairs, although representatives for Gates have repeatedly shot down the allegations.—
Sydney Lake,
Fortune,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Robb demonstrates excellence in both her academic and extracurricular pursuits.—
Darla Rivera,
Oklahoman,
9 Feb. 2026
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To avoid being fired from a day job over her extracurricular activities, Hoffman, whose real first name is Rivkah, adopted a stage name.—
Sonia Rao,
Washington Post,
7 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Adulterous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/adulterous. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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