Definition of "polygamous" [po•lyg•a•mous]

• Relating to, characterized by, or practicing polygamy. (adjective)
• Botany Having both hermaphroditic and unisexual flowers on the same plant or on separate plants of the same species. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "She argues that this has opened the door for legal reconition of marriage rights in polygamous marriages, possibly to the detriment of the children of those marriages."
• "U.S. Attorney for Utah Brett Tolman has resisted that idea, saying that the federal government already is working with the states to investigate crimes in polygamous sects."
• "But leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, many of whose followers lived at the ranch, accused the state agency of conducting an overzealous raid simply because the group believes in polygamous marriages."