Nearby Words

Promiscuous

[pruh-mis-kyoo-uhs] Origin

pro·mis·cu·ous

[pruh-mis-kyoo-uhs]
adjective
1.
characterized by or involving indiscriminate mingling or association, especially having sexual relations with a number of partners on a casual basis.
2.
consisting of parts, elements, or individuals of different kinds brought together without order.
3.
indiscriminate; without discrimination.
4.
casual; irregular; haphazard.

Origin:
1595–1605; < Latin prōmiscuus mixed up, equivalent to prō- pro-1 + misc(ēre) to mix + -uus deverbal adj. suffix; see -ous

pro·mis·cu·ous·ly, adverb
pro·mis·cu·ous·ness, noun
hy·per·pro·mis·cu·ous, adjective
hy·per·pro·mis·cu·ous·ly, adverb
hy·per·pro·mis·cu·ous·ness, noun
EXPAND
non·pro·mis·cu·ous, adjective
non·pro·mis·cu·ous·ly, adverb
non·pro·mis·cu·ous·ness, noun
un·pro·mis·cu·ous, adjective
un·pro·mis·cu·ous·ly, adverb
un·pro·mis·cu·ous·ness, noun
COLLAPSE


1. unchaste. 2. hodgepodge, confused, mixed, jumbled. See miscellaneous. 3. careless.


1, 2. pure. 3. selective.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Promiscuous is always a great word to know.
So is quincunx. Does it mean:
a gadget; dingus; thingumbob.
an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.
Collins
World English Dictionary
promiscuous (prəˈmɪskjʊəs)
 
adj
1.  indulging in casual and indiscriminate sexual relationships
2.  consisting of a number of dissimilar parts or elements mingled in a confused or indiscriminate manner
3.  indiscriminate in selection
4.  casual or heedless
 
[C17: from Latin prōmiscuus indiscriminate, from pro-1 + miscēre to mix]
 
pro'miscuously
 
adv
 
pro'miscuousness
 
n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

promiscuous
c.1600, "consisting of a disorderly mixture of people or things," from L. promiscuus "mixed, indiscriminate," from pro- "forward" + miscere "to mix" (see mix). Meaning "indiscriminate in sexual relations" first recorded 1900, from promiscuity (1849, "indiscriminate mixture;"
EXPAND
sexual sense 1865), from Fr. promiscuité, from L. promiscuus.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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