MARRIAGE

marriage, wedding, marriage ceremony

(noun) the act of marrying; the nuptial ceremony; “their marriage was conducted in the chapel”

marriage, married couple, man and wife

(noun) two people who are married to each other; “his second marriage was happier than the first”; “a married couple without love”

marriage, matrimony, union, spousal relationship, wedlock

(noun) the state of being a married couple voluntarily joined for life (or until divorce); “a long and happy marriage”; “God bless this union”

marriage

(noun) a close and intimate union; “the marriage of music and dance”; “a marriage of ideas”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Noun

marriage (countable and uncountable, plural marriages)

The state of being married. [from 14th c.]

A union of two or more people that creates a family tie and carries legal, social, and/or religious rights and responsibilities. [from 14th c.]

(sometimes specifically) The union of only two people, to the exclusion of all others.

(often specifically) The union of two people of opposite sex, to the exclusion of all others.

(prison slang) A homosexual relationship between male prisoners.

A wedding; a ceremony in which people wed. [from 14th c.]

(figuratively) A close union. [from 15th c.]

A joining of two parts.

(card games) A king and a queen, when held as a hand in Texas hold 'em or melded in pinochle.

(card games) In solitaire or patience games, the placing a card of the same suit on the next one above or below it in value.

Usage notes

• For a detailed discussion of marriage as an institution, with its traditions, its norms, and its accompanying legal rights and obligations, please consult the Wikipedia article on marriage.

• On Wiktionary, see also "common-law marriage", "open marriage", and "gay marriage".

Synonyms

• matrimony

• wedding

• civil union

Hyponyms

• wedlease

Antonyms

• divorce

Anagrams

• germaria

Source: Wiktionary

Mar"riage, n. Etym: [OE. mariage, F. mariage. See Marry, v. t.]

1. The act of marrying, or the state of being married; legal union of a man and a woman for life, as husband and wife; wedlock; matrimony. Marriage is honorable in all. Heb. xiii. 4.

2. The marriage vow or contract. [Obs.] Chaucer.

3. A feast made on the occasion of a marriage. The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king which made a marriage for his son. Matt. xxii. 2.

4. Any intimate or close union. Marriage brokage. (a) The business of bringing about marriages. (b) The payment made or demanded for the procurement of a marriage.

– Marriage favors, knots of white ribbons, or bunches of white flowers, worn at weddings.

– Marriage settlement (Law), a settlement of property in view, and in consideration, of marriage.

Syn.

– Matrimony; wedlock; wedding; nuptials.

– Marriage, Matrimony, Wedlock. Marriage is properly the act which unites the two parties, and matrimony the state into which they enter. Marriage is, however, often used for the state as well as the act. Wedlock is the old Anglo-Saxon term for matrimony.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition