prostitute
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: prostitutė and prostitutę
Etymology
From Latin prōstitūtus, past participle of prōstituō, from prō̆ (“for, before”) + statuō (“to set up, to erect”).
Pronunciation
Verb
prostitute (third-person singular simple present prostitutes, present participle prostituting, simple past and past participle prostituted)
- (transitive, reflexive) To offer (oneself or someone else) for sexual activity in exchange for money. [from 16th c.]
- 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Leviticus xix:29:
- Do not prostitute thy daughter.
- (transitive, derogatory) To sacrifice (oneself, one's talents etc.) in return for profit or other advantage; to exploit for base purposes.
- 1740, John Dyer, “The Ruins of Rome. A Poem.”, in Poems. [...] Viz. I. Grongar Hill. II. The Ruins of Rome. III. The Fleece, in Four Books, London: Printed by John Hughs, for Messrs. R[obert] and J[ames] Dodsley, […], published 1759, →OCLC, pages 42–43:
- [T]heſe, their rights / In the vile ſtreets they proſtitute to ſale; / Their ancient rights, their dignities, their laws, / Their native glorious freedom.
Synonyms
- (to offer oneself for sexual activity for money): sell one's body, turn tricks; see also Thesaurus:prostitute oneself
- (to offer another person for sexual activity for money): pimp; see also Thesaurus:pimp out
- (to use one's talents for money): sell out
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
reflexive: to perform sexual activity for money
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to make another person, or organisation, prostitute themselves
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derogatory: to use one's talents in return for money or fame
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figuratively: to exploit for base purposes
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Adjective
prostitute (comparative more prostitute, superlative most prostitute)
- (obsolete) Debased, corrupt; seeking personal gain by dishonourable means. [16th–19th c.]
- 1791, Thomas Paine, Rights of Man:
- [H]e speaks a languages that merits not reply, and which can only excite contempt for his prostitute principles, or pity for his ignorance.
- Taking part in promiscuous sexual activity, licentious; (later, chiefly as attributive use of noun) that is a prostitute. [from 16th c.]
- 2008, Niki Adams, Lisa Longstaff, The Guardian, letters, 23 February:
- They rightly say that attacks against prostitute women are common and that it's only when five are murdered in one place that it starts to provoke debate.
- (obsolete) Exposed, subjected (to something shameful). [16th–18th c.]
- 1651, Thomas Hobbes, Philosophicall rudiments concerning government and society:
- As a matter of ease, exposed and prostitute to every Mother-wit, and to be attained without any great care or study.
Noun
prostitute (plural prostitutes)
- Any person (especially a woman) who has sexual intercourse or engages in other sexual activity for payment, especially as a means of livelihood. [from 18th c.]
- Synonyms: sex worker; see also Thesaurus:prostitute
- Hyponyms: see Thesaurus:prostitute
- A woman who has sexual intercourse or engages in other sexual activity for payment, especially as a means of livelihood. [from 17th c.]
- 2012, Kelly Olson, Dress and the Roman Woman: Self-Presentation and Society, page 50:
- Unfortunately, there is to my knowledge no visual evidence for the dress of the Roman prostitute, but the literary sources present us with a range of prostitute clothing (from rich accoutrements all the way down to nothing), […]
- A person who does, or offers to do, a demeaning or dishonourable activity for money or personal gain; someone who acts in a dishonourable way for personal advantage. [from 17th c.]
- Synonym: sellout
Usage notes
- Some speakers consider prostitutes (sex workers) to be female by default, and thus use "male prostitute" to refer to a man doing the same job.
Synonyms
Translations
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A user suggests that this English entry be cleaned up, giving the reason: “split by senses (any person / female person; possible move some incorrect translations to e.g. manwhore)”. |
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| Please see the discussion on Requests for cleanup(+) or the talk page for more information and remove this template after the problem has been dealt with. |
a person having sex for profit
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a female person having sex for profit
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Noun
prostitute
- plural of prostituut
Pronunciation
Noun
prostitute f
- plural of prostituta
Pronunciation
- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): /proːs.tiˈtuː.te/, [proːs̠t̪ɪˈt̪uːt̪ɛ]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /pros.tiˈtu.te/, [prost̪iˈt̪uːt̪e]
Participle
prōstitūte
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