uxorial

adjective

ux·​o·​ri·​al ˌək-ˈsȯr-ē-əl  ˌəg-ˈzȯr- 

: of, relating to, or characteristic of a wife

Did you know?

With help from "-ial," "-ious," and "-icide," the Latin word uxor, meaning "wife," has given us the English words "uxorial," "uxorious" (meaning "excessively fond of or submissive to a wife"), and "uxoricide" ("murder of a wife by her husband" or "a wife murderer"). Do we have equivalent "husband" words? Well, sort of. Maritus means "husband in Latin," so "marital" can mean "of or relating to a husband and his role in marriage" (although "maritus" also means "married," and the "of or relating to marriage or the married state" sense of "marital" is far more common). And while "mariticide" is "spouse killing," it can also be specifically "husband-killing."

Examples of uxorial in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Sordi, of course, had a boyish mug built to amuse, and it’s paired well with Massari’s coiled portrait of uxorial frustration. —Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Latin uxorius

First Known Use

1800, in the meaning defined above

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