Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Having more than one husband at the same time: Describes a marriage system or practice where a woman is married to more than one man concurrently.
   • Having numerous stamens: In botany, describes a flower that possesses many stamens (the male, pollen-producing reproductive organs).

Usage Examples

• Social Anthropology:
  • The anthropologist studied a polyandrous society in the Himalayas.
  • In some cultures, polyandrous marriages were practiced to manage limited land resources.
• Botany:
  • The magnolia flower is polyandrous, with a distinctive spiral of numerous stamens.
  • Botanists classify the plant as polyandrous due to its floral structure.

Advanced Usage

• Cultural Context: The term is often used in anthropological and sociological discussions to describe specific kinship and marriage structures, contrasting with monogamy or polygyny.
  • Fraternal polyandry, where brothers share a wife, is one form of polyandrous union.
• Scientific Description: In botanical texts, it is a precise technical descriptor for floral morphology.
  • The androecium of the species is polyandrous, consisting of over twenty stamens.

Variants and Related Words

• Polyandry (n): The practice or condition of having more than one husband at a time; the state of a flower having many stamens.
  • Polyandry is less common globally than polygyny.
• Polyandrist (n): A woman who has more than one husband.
  • The polyandrist managed a household with three husbands.

Synonyms

• Multi-husband (anthropological context, non-technical).
• Polygamous (broader term that can include having multiple spouses of either sex, but is less precise).
• Multi-stamened (botanical context).

Antonyms

• Monandrous (having one husband or one stamen).
• Monogamous (being married to one person at a time).

Adjective

1. having more than one husband at a time