The term 'hot wife' refers to a married woman who has sex with men other than her spouse with her spouse's consent. In most cases the husbands of these women will enjoy watching, hearing or knowing about their wives' adventures. Often the husbands take part, sometimes by engaging in a threesome, or sometimes just arranging dates for their wives.

A distinct subculture of hotwifing is cuckolding. This subculture is generally defined by a relationship in which the husband enjoys the humiliation of his wife being sexually satisfied by other men.