promiscuous
promiscuous Lexical Profile
promiscuous Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
Having or involving many transient sexual relationships, or engaging in sexual activity frequently and indiscriminately with different partners.
"Public health campaigns often emphasize safe practices for individuals with promiscuous lifestyles."
Demonstrating or involving an unselective, casual, or indiscriminate approach, without careful distinction or restriction.
"The critic noted that the author's promiscuous borrowing from disparate literary genres resulted in an uneven narrative."
Consisting of a wide range of different things or elements mixed together without order or distinction (formal or dated).
"The attic contained a promiscuous heap of antique furniture, old ledgers, and forgotten family heirlooms."
Word Nuance & Usage
In modern everyday usage, 'promiscuous' almost exclusively refers to having casual sexual relations with many partners and frequently carries a judgmental or derogatory tone. Its older, broader meaning of 'indiscriminate, unselective, or mixed without order' (as in 'promiscuous reading') is now largely restricted to formal, literary, or technical contexts.
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the early 17th century from Latin 'promiscuus' ('mixed, indiscriminate, shared in common'), formed from 'pro-' ('forward, thoroughly') and 'miscere' ('to mix').