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paramour — a lover, especially the illicit partner of a married person

Part of speech: NOUN

Definition: a lover, especially the illicit partner of a married person

Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈpærəmʊr/

Example Sentences

  • The king's paramour lived in a luxurious apartment near the palace.
  • She discovered her husband's paramour through suspicious credit card bills.
  • The wealthy businessman bought his paramour a red sports car, which his wife promptly crashed into a tree.

paramour

NOUN

[/ˈpærəmʊr/]

a lover, especially the illicit partner of a married person

Secret lover of married person
💡 Concept

Secret lover of married person

A secret detour along love's contour leads to her paramour
🎵 Rhyme

A secret detour along love's contour leads to her paramour

Got the picture? Now let's practice.

🎤Pronunciation

🇺🇸 US/ˈpærəmʊr/
🇬🇧 UK/ˈpærəmʊə/

🌳Etymology

Rootpar amour

Origin

The word derives from Middle French 'par amour', literally meaning 'by love' or 'for love's sake'. Originally a neutral term for 'a beloved person', it underwent semantic shift over time to denote specifically an illicit romantic partner or lover outside of marriage.

Breakdown

par- (by, through) + amour (love, from Latin amor). The phrase par amour literally combines the preposition 'par' (by) with the noun 'amour' (love) to form a compound meaning 'through love'.

🎵Rhyme

amour
detour
contour

🔗Collocations

secret paramour
keep a paramour
discover a paramour
meet one's paramour
abandon a paramour

📝Examples

“The king's paramour lived in a luxurious apartment near the palace.”

“She discovered her husband's paramour through suspicious credit card bills.”

😄 Fun example

“The wealthy businessman bought his paramour a red sports car, which his wife promptly crashed into a tree.”

😄 Fun example

“In the soap opera, everyone seemed to have a secret paramour hidden somewhere.”

📚Related Words

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