Incestual
/ɪnˈsɛstʃuəl/noun
Relating to or involving incest.
Did you know?Latin incestus originally meant “impure” or “unchaste” in a broad religious and moral sense before English usage narrowed it toward sexual relations between close relatives.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Latin
Latin
incestus
“Impure, unchaste, polluted; formed from in- (“not”) and castus (“pure”).”
Classical Latin
Latin
incestum
“A violation of ritual or moral purity; later, forbidden sexual relations between relatives.”
12th–13th Century
Old French
inceste
“Incest or sexual relations prohibited by religious and kinship law.”
Middle English
English
incest
“Sexual intercourse between people within prohibited degrees of kinship.”
16th Century
English
incestuous
“Characterized by or involving incest.”
19th Century
English
incestual
“Relating to incest; an adjective formed from incest with the suffix -ual.”
Modern English
English
incestual
“Pertaining to incest, though “incestuous” is far more common.”