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harlotry

noun

ˈhär-lə-trē How to pronounce harlotry (audio)
Definition of harlotrynext
disapproving
as in prostitution
the practice of engaging in sexual activities for money a city that in biblical times was infamous for licentiousness and harlotry

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of harlotry In one case, the life of an upper-class woman and contemporary of Julius Caesar, Clodia, saw her reputation destroyed by false claims of harlotry, home-wrecking, and husband-killing. — Time, 24 Nov. 2025 Within the slippery world of harlotry—where class can be transcended and humanity bought—relationships form that defy our historical assumptions about the bounded categories of human experience. — Sarah Marshall, New Republic, 2 June 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for harlotry
prostitution
Noun
  • One of the albums in the pair’s collection is filled with photographs (of extraordinary, poignant provenance) from the nineteen-forties and fifties of women who, as children, had been abducted and forced into prostitution.
    — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Alix Earle’s stepmother opened up about the choices that once made her tabloid fodder, including her connection to the Eliot Spitzer prostitution scandal and her affair with the influencer’s married father.
    — Lauryn Overhultz, FOXNews.com, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of prostitution

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harlotries
harlotry
harm
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Cite this Entry

“Harlotry.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/harlotry. Accessed 29 Sep. 2026.

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