(transitive,derogatory) To sacrifice (oneself, one's talents etc.) in return for profit or other advantage; toexploit for base purposes.
1740,John Dyer, “The Ruins of Rome. A Poem.”, inPoems.[...] Viz. I. Grongar Hill. II. The Ruins of Rome. III. The Fleece, in Four Books, London: Printed by John Hughs, for Messrs.R[obert] andJ[ames] Dodsley,[…], published1759,→OCLC,pages42–43:
[T]heſe, their rights / In the vile ſtreets theyproſtitute to ſale; / Their ancient rights, their dignities, their laws, / Their native glorious freedom.
[H]e speaks a languages that merits not reply, and which can only excite contempt for hisprostitute principles, or pity for his ignorance.
Taking part inpromiscuous 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 againstprostitute women are common and that it's only when five are murdered in one place that it starts to provoke debate.
2012, Kelly Olson,Dress and the Roman Woman: Self-Presentation and Society, page50:
Unfortunately, there is to my knowledge no visual evidence for the dress of the Romanprostitute, 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 formoney or personal gain; someone who acts in a dishonourable way for personal advantage.[from 17th c.]
2019 May 18, Jack Shepherd, quoting Bobby Gillespie, “Primal Scream frontman calls Madonna a 'total prostitute' for performing at Eurovision in Israel”, inThe Independent[1]:
Madonna would do anything for money, you know, she's a totalprostitute. And I've got nothing against prostitutes.
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.
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)”.
Please see the discussion onRequests for cleanup(+) or thetalk page for more information and remove this template after the problem has been dealt with.
