Meaning & use
married
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Meanings
adjectivenot comparable
Having a husband or wife; joined in marriage.
Grammar: Used after be, get, or become: They got married last year. It is not used before a noun in this sense.
Patterns
- be married
- get married
- be married to someone
My parents have been married for thirty years.
She got married in a small ceremony in the spring.
Are you married, or are you still single?
adjectivebefore a noun
Relating to marriage or to people who are married.
Grammar: Comes before a noun: married life, a married couple. It describes the state or the people, not a single person's status.
Patterns
- married life
- a married couple
- married name
They say married life suits him well.
The hotel offers special rates for married couples.
She still uses her married name at work.
Common combinations
- happily married
- They have been happily married for over a decade.
- get married to someone
- He got married to his university girlfriend.
- married with children
- Many of the applicants are married with children.
- newly married
- The newly married pair moved into a small flat.
- married couple
- The tax form asks whether you are part of a married couple.
Synonyms and how they differ
- wedded
- More formal or literary; often used in fixed phrases like wedded bliss.
- spoused
- Rare and old-fashioned; not used in everyday speech.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: married or marry?
married vs marry
Marry is the verb (They married in June); married is the adjective (They are married). Don't say 'They are marry'.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence.
Choose one answer.
The correct pattern is 'married to someone'. 'Married with' is used for children or possessions, not for a spouse.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “married”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.