Etymologically speaking, there is no adult in adultery. Derived from the Latin verb adulterare, which meant “to debase” or “to corrupt,” the English noun adultery was coined circa 1415—back then it was spelled adulterie or sometimes adultrie—not to suggest anything about adults per se but to imply that a sexual hookup with somebody other than one's spouse would irreparably corrupt one's marital union. Also a derivative of the Latin verb adulterare, the English verb adulterate (which retains the Latin's specific meaning) was coined about 150 years after adultery, probably around the same time the noun ended its union with ie and hooked up with y.
©2021 Michael R. Gates
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