Meaning & use
your marital status
Last updated
Meaning
phrasefixed phraseformal
Whether you are married, single, divorced, or widowed; the state of your legal relationship status.
Grammar: Always used with a possessive word before it: my, your, his, her, or their marital status.
Patterns
- your marital status
- someone's marital status
- ask about someone's marital status
Please write your marital status on the first line of the form.
The bank asked for my marital status before opening the account.
She refused to discuss her marital status with reporters.
Common combinations
- state your marital status
- You must state your marital status when you apply for the visa.
- change your marital status
- You have to tell the tax office if you change your marital status.
- marital status on a form
- There is a box for marital status on a form near the top.
- ask about someone's marital status
- It can be rude to ask about someone's marital status at work.
Synonyms and how they differ
- relationship status
- More informal and wider; it can mean single, in a relationship, engaged, or married, not only legal marriage.
- civil status
- A formal legal term covering marriage plus other official facts such as nationality.
Word family
Commonly confused: your marital status or martial?
your marital status vs martial
Sounds almost the same but means 'relating to war or soldiers' (martial law). Marital has one r and means 'relating to marriage'.
Practice
On the application form, please indicate your ______ status.
Choose one answer.
'Marital status' is the fixed formal phrase for whether you are married or single. 'Martial' means relating to war, 'married' is not used before 'status' in this phrase, and 'marriage status' is not the standard wording.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “your marital status”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.