alimony
English · Thesaurus
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alimony
- /ˈæl.ɪ.mə.ni/ UK
- /ˈæl.ə.moʊ.ni/ US
Where it comes from
Known since the 17th century, from Latin alimōnia (“food, support, nourishment, sustenance”) (English aliment, as in alimentary), itself from alō (“to nourish”) + -mōnia (“action, state, condition”).
noun alimonies
-
A court-mandated allowance made to a former spouse by a divorced or legally separated person.
In that case he has to pay her alimony even if there are no children, and if she is one of those smart ones, interested in nothing but a good living and independence, she is set for life.
Similar: maintenance
- Nourishment, sustenance, especially for one's spirit. […]while we eate the bread of sorrow, drinking the wine of compunction, wee hunger and thirst after heauenly things, and shall be comforted. This is the constant alimonie of the righteous, at dinner and supper, in life and death[…]
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: maintenance, allowance, expense, pension, annuity, superannuation, support, food, dietary, foods, foodstuffs, spousal support, palimony, estovers, alimentation, aliment
Translations
Every language
noun a court-enforced allowance
| Español | pensión alimenticia, alimentos, manutención, mantención |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 扶養料 fuyōryō |
| 中文 | 贍養費 /赡养费 shànyǎngfèi |
| Português | pensão alimentícia, pensão |
| Français | pension alimentaire |
| Deutsch | Unterhalt, Alimente |
| Italiano | alimenti |
| Ελληνικά | επίδομα διατροφής epídoma diatrofís, διατροφή diatrofí |
| Română | pensie de întreținere, pensie alimentară |
| Русский | алименты alimenty |
| العربية | نَفَقَة nafaqa |
| עברית | מְזוֹנוֹת mezonót |
noun the means to support life
| Ελληνικά | τροφεία trofeía |
|---|---|
| Русский | сре́дства к существова́нию srédstva k suščestvovániju |
Talk about this word "alimony." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/alimony. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. alimony. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/alimony "alimony." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/alimony.Cite this
@misc{alimony_2026,
title = {alimony},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/alimony},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
