Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A lover, especially one in an adulterous relationship.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- With love; in love; as a lover.
- n. A lover, of either sex; a wooer.
- n. A lover, of either sex, in a bad sense; one who takes the place of a husband or wife without legal right: the only sense of the word now in use.
- n. Love, as between the sexes; gallantry.
- To love; be in love with; woo.
Wiktionary
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A lover, of either sex; a wooer or a mistress (formerly in a good sense, now only in a bad one); one who takes the place, without possessing the rights, of a husband or wife; -- used of a man or a woman.
- n. obsolete Love; gallantry.
- adv. obsolete By or with love, esp. the love of the sexes; -- sometimes written as two words.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a woman who cohabits with an important man
- n. a woman's lover
Etymologies
- From Old French par amor ("for love's sake"). (Wiktionary)
- Middle English, from par amour, by way of love, passionately, from Anglo-Norman : par, by (from Latin per; see per1 in Indo-European roots) + amour, love (from Latin amor, from amāre, to love). (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“We also heard it had been rented or owned by William Randolph Hearst for his long-term paramour, Marion Davies.”
“In “Beauty and the Beast” or “The Frog Prince,” the animal paramour is an enchanted human, so by means of a deus ex machina, the beast becomes a prince.”
“He talked the Luciano gang into backing him in building his dream casino, The Flamingo, the nickname he called his paramour Virginia Hill.”
“You need to get over yourself, learn some humility, and then you need to move on. p.s.: a nut bag is something entirely different than you think and stop using the word paramour, it makes you sound like an arrogant donkey.”
“PPPlleassseee. e ... give me a break with this phony ness and go hang out with your 'paramour' - about whom you want to brag to Maria but Maria is not interested!!”
“• Ultimately giving the money from his wife and children's accounts to himself and his "paramour" -- including using the money to pay for a credit card he and his girlfriend used.”
“Isn't that what the guy busted for sex with a vacuum called his paramour?”
“To top it all off, his paramour was a part-time staffer who was on the payroll and often traveled with Souder.”
“If her paramour is a Gond, Rawat, Binjhwar or Kawar, he is allowed to become a Dhanwar and marry her on giving several feasts, the exact number being fixed by the village Baiga or priest in a _panchayat_ or committee.”
The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India Volume II
“_ Who has an account to demand then -- you, whose life is already forfeit for an accumulation of crimes; you, screened by a conspiracy of bribed servants and ... your best friend's wife, as you dare call your paramour; or I, in my brother's absence the natural guardian of his family, of his honour?”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘paramour’.
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A-R-A Words
It's an odd-looking pattern in English. Please add words if it makes you happy. :) K-POW! Wow @gulyasrobi!
scarab, Arawak, Sahara, Arab, pharaoh, caravan, carat, parachute, arachnid, Saran Wrap, Sarah, tarantella and 492 more...
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4087 more...
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hunting
crudely, unequivocal, obsolete, obscure, overtly, misdeed, shack, inherent, outcry, hefty, composed, poised and 318 more...
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sdamle1
echt
echt, apocalypse, resurgence, forthright, logorrhea, mercurial, torrid, exorcise, obscure, intrusive, morose, vindictive and 100 more...
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January 2012
bloviate, pastiche, apparat, facile, paroxysm, pique, bedfellow, pedigree, tutelage, protege, protégé, retroactive and 196 more...
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Baltimorese
Words, phrases, and peculiar pronunciations favored by Baltimore locals (Baltimorons).
baltimoron, cigrette, warsh, bawlmer, merryland, wooder, fahr, arhn, tarred, zinc, arnjoos, leginament and 21 more...
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My daily Wordsheets
paramour, flail, addle, adduce, adduction, adenitis, adenocarcinoma, adhocracy, adiabatic, adipocyte, adiposity, postpone and 25 more...
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Hearticulating
All sorts of names or terms for romantic partners: vague, clinical, physical, sleazy, cheesy, co-dependent, demeaning, sarcastic, or the dutifully committed. This is to provide a wide-range of le...
couple, partner, lover, sweetheart, significant other, confidant, consort, mate, better half, paramour, accomplice, counterpart and 52 more...
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big book gre
abase, abbess, abbey, abbot, abdicate, abdomen, abdominal, abduction, abed, aberration, abet, abeyance and 6691 more...
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(more or less) Temporary Urth List
Temporary list is temporary.
Collecting a few words here, which are then to be alloted to other lists.vassal, gnaw, putrescence, liege, pederasty, disseminate, loot, waning, fitful, hiatuse, plow, pious and 292 more...
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africasunsets's list
serendipity, fragrance, glamour, smitten, nourish, lavish, luxury, wicked, gem, daring, soothe, fantasy and 192 more...
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play words
words for a play
pert, vicissitude, melancholy, vexation, gaud, attestation, renunciation, wax, wrought, sunder, antipodes, reckoning and 236 more...
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litigious semantics
ad unguem, abeyance, choleric, contentious, curmudgeonly, churlish, dictatorial, vindictive, dogmatic, truculent, mutinous, refractory and 254 more...
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Wordnik Notebooks
All the words from the cover of the Wordnik notebook.
A few words appear twice: frass, cruet, luna, thalweg, and possibly some more.
Careful: Contains spoilers!spilth, frass, fomite, rux, worricow, alizarin, mundungus, parthenocarpy, jib, whinyard, weisure, nimiety and 217 more...
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use•ful
palmary, glossolalia, bothum, high-proof, synesthesia, odious, autochthonous, yawp, mordacious, dynamo, dishevel, titely and 414 more...
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dirtysnowflake's Words
snowflake, parisian, couture, mystery, ruby, clandestine, corset, october, list, touch, caress, aboulia and 156 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for paramour.
milosrdenstvi Baltimorese for "power mower" Jan 3, 2011
thesaraheffect "Should I believe that unsubstantial Death is amorous? And that the lean abhorred monster keeps Thee here in darkness to be his paramour?"
--R&J Act 5 Scene 3 Sep 18, 2009