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uxorious

(adj): foolishly fond of or submissive to your wife
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adjective
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14 days ago chained_bear said:

Logos, it was a joke.

14 days ago logos said:

I remember having to decline this word in Latin class as a child. Uxor means wife. And Latin does not suck! How can you be a wordie and not love Latin? People suck, not languages.

8 months ago singlepayernow said:

that is pretty phunny! lol. i thought you were someone else who was going to point that out, but it turns out you caught your own mistake. or two interpretations at least.

9 months ago sionnach said:

oh, snicker all you want! You know what I meant. The children were not being sent down the mines in search of legal guidance.

9 months ago sionnach said:

Responding to Ecrivaine33's original question, the word uxorious does apply to husbands, as it implies excessive devotion to one's wife.

One might speculate that no corresponding word exists to describe the condition of a wife's excessive devotion to her husband, because back in the days when people used such high-falutin' latinate terms, this type of devotion was expected from all women. Somewhat analogous to lesbian acts never having been illegal in England, because the sodomy laws were instituted in Victorian times and the Queen simply could not imagine* intimate sexual acts between two women, making it unnecessary to criminalize such behavior.

* of course, this implies the existence of behavior so unconscionably depraved it's legal. But then, maybe we should not look to a society which sent children down the coalmines for legal guidance.

9 months ago singlepayernow said:

equality? when did that happen?

10 months ago chained_bear said:

Usage note:
1835 DICKENS Sk. Boz, Mr. Watkins Tottle i, "A rather uncommon compound of strong uxorious inclinations, and an unparalleled degree of anti-connubial timidity."

10 months ago uselessness said:

Don't look at me, it's Latin that sux. ;-)

10 months ago chained_bear said:

Mistake--it's Latin for "wife."

10 months ago reesetee said:

Ex-ux? That sux.

10 months ago uselessness said:

It's sometimes used in legal terminology, as in "John Smith et ux." similar to "et al." or "etc." If John Smith gets divorced, her title become ex-ux.

10 months ago chained_bear said:

That's because uxor is Latin for "consort" or companion. (I think.) I'm basing this solely on the dark, cobwebbed recesses of my brain, in which "uxor" meant "the wife of" in medieval portraits of the kings of England. E.g. "Elizabeth Uxor Edwardus."

10 months ago oroboros said:

Henpecked, "not wearing the pants in the family". Just saw a crossword puzzle clue: "caesar's wife" which worked out to "uxor".

about 1 year ago ichthyos said: in response to Ecrivaine

It doesn't seem like there is, but you could use the same etymology to come up with maritorious.

Source: http://www.askoxford.com/asktheexperts/faq/aboutwords/uxorious

about 1 year ago singlepayernow said: uxorious

i have a feeling this is going to describe me if i ever get married

about 1 year ago Ecrivaine33 said: Just heard of this for the first time and blogged about it yesterday - Weird, now I see it again today

Hmmmm, I just heard this word for the first time yesterday - got it on my Word-A-Day email from one of those sites.

Is there maybe a word to describe the male gender, the husband, as well? That was what I wondered when I read it, us being in this day and age of equality and all : )

http://people.tribe.net/ecrivaine32/blog/f600fa12-bd27-42c0-b987-373c089d04e4

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