A yearning for change, specifically a change of sexual partner after seven years of marriage. This expression gained currency through George Axelrod’s play The Seven-Year Itch (1952), later made into a movie starring Marilyn Monroe (1955). Originally the phrase was used for various skin conditions. One such use was for poison ivy, in the belief that the rash would recur every year for seven years. Also, centuries ago itch was a slang word for “sexual desire.” Today, the expression invariably refers to the wish for a new sexual partner and, for some reason, tends to be applied only to men. Thus Patricia Moyes wrote, “There’s something called the seven-year itch . . . middle-aged men quite suddenly cutting loose” (Angel of Death, 1980).