Meaning & use
engaged relationship
Last updated
Meaning
phrasecountable
A romantic relationship in which two people have formally agreed to marry each other.
Grammar: Often used with 'be in': They are in an engaged relationship.
Patterns
- be in an engaged relationship
- have an engaged relationship with someone
After two years together, they announced they were in an engaged relationship.
She moved to a new city to be closer to her partner in their engaged relationship.
Their engaged relationship lasted eighteen months before the wedding.
Word forms
| plural | engaged relationships |
|---|
Common combinations
- be in an engaged relationship
- They have been in an engaged relationship since last spring.
- engaged to someone
- He is engaged to a doctor he met at university.
- get engaged
- They got engaged on holiday in Italy.
- engaged couple
- The engaged couple are planning a small wedding.
Synonyms and how they differ
- betrothed
- Very formal or old-fashioned; used mostly in literature or ceremonies.
- affianced
- Archaic and literary; almost never used in everyday speech.
Opposites
Word family
- engage verb
- To formally agree to marry someone.
- engagement noun
- The agreement or period before marriage.
- fiancé noun
- The man a woman is engaged to.
- fiancée noun
- The woman a man is engaged to.
Commonly confused: engaged relationship or engagement?
engaged relationship vs engagement
As a noun, 'engagement' can mean a formal agreement to marry, but it also means an appointment or arrangement to do something (a business engagement).
Practice
She has been ______ an engaged relationship for six months.
Choose one answer.
'In' is the correct preposition: you are 'in' a relationship. 'On' and 'at' do not fit this phrase, and 'with' would need a person, as in 'engaged with someone'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “engaged relationship”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.