"一夫多妻制，" 1590年代，源自晚期拉丁語 polygamia，源自晚期希臘語 polygamia "一夫多妻制"，源自 polygamos "經常結婚"，源自 polys "許多"（參見 poly-）+ gamos "婚姻"（參見 gamete）。從詞源上講，該詞並不僅限於一個男人和多個女人的婚姻（嚴格來說 polygyny），但通常被當作是如此使用。相關詞彙： Polygamist; polygamize。
In Christian countries, when a man has more wives than one, or a woman more husbands than one, at the same time, he or she is punishable for polygamy ; but if there was a separate marriage with each the first marriage would be valid notwithstanding the subsequent ones, and the later ones would be void. The offense of contracting the subsequent marriage is now termed bigamy. But polygamy in the form of polygyny is allowed in some countries, especially among Mohammedans, and was held a matter of faith and duty by the Mormons. [Century Dictionary, 1895]
在基督教國家，當一個男人同時擁有多個妻子，或者一個女人同時擁有多個丈夫時，他或她將受到一夫多妻制的懲罰； 但如果每個婚姻都是獨立的，第一次婚姻將仍然有效，而後來的婚姻將無效。現在，與後來的婚姻相比，違反第一次婚姻的行爲被稱爲 bigamy。但是，一夫多妻制在一些國家是被允許的，尤其是在穆斯林中間，並且被摩門教徒視爲信仰和責任的問題。[世紀詞典，1895]
