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unfaithful

unfaithful

39 4.0
Having sex with someone who is not your partner
  • adjective
  • /ʌnˈfeɪθfəl/
  • NSFW
translation icon : infiel
  • Many people struggle with feelings of guilt when they are unfaithful in a relationship.
  • an unfaithful partner
  • an unfaithful husband
  • an unfaithful wife

I don't understand how people are unfaithful because the only thing that can quench lust is love.

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Examples

  • She felt devastated after learning that her boyfriend was unfaithful to her.

  • According to the men, unfaithful women destroy their husbands' honor.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Yeah, I had an unfaithful wife.

  • I was unfaithful last year.

  • I'm not being unfaithful to anyone.

  • Now, not all people who are unfaithful in a relationship are narcissistic.

  • Frida's husband was unfaithful to her, but she did not tolerate it.

    Academic text (2011)
  • I've never loved anyone else, and I've never been unfaithful to him.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • He discovered that his wife had been unfaithful during their marriage.

Synonyms

disloyal
vsunfaithful
30 4.2

Not supporting or being faithful to people you should support

is limited to sexual or romantic lack of commitment within a partnership
adulterous
vsunfaithful
  • NSFW
14 7.4

Having a sexual relationship with someone who is not your husband, wife, or partner

is broader, covering lack of commitment in a romantic relationship beyond only sex
untrue
vsunfaithful
5 3.4

Not loyal to a person you trust

focuses on sexual or romantic lack of commitment rather than general untrustworthiness
cheating
vsunfaithful
  • NSFW
3.5

Not faithful to a partner by having a romantic or sexual relationship with someone else

emphasizes the ongoing lack of commitment in a romantic relationship

Antonyms

505 1.0

Always supporting a person or group, especially in hard times

faithful
  • NSFW
120 2.1

Having sex only with your husband, wife, or partner

How Faithful

devoted
80 3.4
faithful
104 1.8
unfaithful
  • NSFW
39 4.0
cheating
  • NSFW
3.5

Surface Forms

unfaithful positive

Morphology

unfaithful = faithful (transparent) = un + faith + ful

Productive negation by 'un-' applied to 'faithful' yields 'not faithful' in the romantic/sexual sense; meaning is directly inferable.

Etymology

Unfaithful comes from un- 'not' plus faith 'trust' or 'loyalty', the same idea behind faithful. So in a relationship, unfaithful means not staying loyal, for example having a sexual relationship outside the partnership.