conjugal

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin coniugālis (“relating to marriage”),^{[2][3][4][5][6]} possibly through conjugal,^[7][8] and Etymonline derives it from the French word, which it dates to the 13th century.^[9] The OED compares the French word only, noting it in Cotgrave (1611).^[2] The Latin adjective is from coniūnx (“spouse”),^[2][3][5][6] which is related to coniungō (“to join together”)^[2][6] and coniugō (“to join together in marriage”).^[4][9] These are formed from com- (“together”)^[4][9] and the base of iugum (“yoke”)^[4][10][9] and iungō (“to join”),^[4][5][2] from Proto-Indo-European *yeug- (“to join”).^[9] Latin iugum is related to yoke and yoga.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of or relating to marriage: 1545, in G. Joye's Exposicion of Daniel.^[2][7][8]

Semantic evolution

About 1550, in J. Bale, it was also used of a married couple's relations with each other,^[2] and Etymonline gives both senses from the 1540s.^[9] Ayto sees the notion of joining together behind it.^[4] Johnson (1755) defined it as "matrimonial; belonging to marriage; connubial", quoting Dryden's "conjugal affection" and Swift's "conjugal dispute".^[11] In conjugal rights it refers to the rights, especially to sexual relations, held to be exercisable in law by each partner of a marriage.^[12] A modern use, in the study of society, describes a family built on husband, wife and children, in contrast to the consanguine type.^[8]

Timeline

• 1545 – of or relating to marriage.^[2][7][8]
• c. 1550 – of a married couple in their relation to each other.^[2]
• early 17th century – the adverb conjugally.^[12]
• mid 17th century – the noun conjugality.^[12]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Of or relating to marriage or a married couple's relationship; matrimonial, connubial: years of conjugal contentment.^[13][8][2]
2. Based on husband, wife and their children as the functional family unit of a society.^[8]

Word family

• conjugality
• conjugally
• nonconjugal
• unconjugal
• conjugal rights

Related words

• conjugate
• conjoin
• conjunct
• conjunction
• join
• yoke
• yoga

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
4. ^ a b c d e f g Ayto, John (2005), Word Origins: The Secret Histories of English Words from A to Z, 2nd ed., London: A & C Black
5. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
7. ^ a b c Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
8. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
9. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
10. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
11. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
12. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
13. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins