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View synonyms for spouse

spouse

[ noun spous, spouz; verb spouz, spous ]

noun

  1. either member of a married pair in relation to the other; one's husband or wife.


verb (used with object)

, spoused, spous·ing.
  1. Obsolete. to join, give, or take in marriage.

spouse

noun

  1. a person's partner in marriage spousal
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. obsolete.
    tr to marry
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Words From

  • spousehood noun
  • spouseless adjective
  • un·spoused adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of spouse1

First recorded in 1150–1200; (for the noun) Middle English, from Old French spous (masculine), spouse (feminine), shortened from espous, espouse, from Latin spōnsus, spōnsa, literally, “pledged (man, woman),” noun uses of past participle of spondēre “to pledge”; (for the verb) Middle English spousen, from Old French esp(o)user; espouse
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Word History and Origins

Origin of spouse1

C12: from Old French spus (masculine), spuse (feminine), from Latin sponsus, sponsa betrothed man or woman, from spondēre to promise solemnly
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Example Sentences

Every day millions of people share more intimate information with their accessories than they do with their spouse.

Many women are farmers themselves while others work the farm alongside their spouse.

It also bars members of a president’s family from running for the country’s top job and also requires candidates to be exclusively Gabonese and have a Gabonese spouse.

From BBC

The characters will ask themselves: Why doesn’t my spouse want to be with me?

In households where both spouses work, women spend an average of 187 minutes a day on domestic work while men spend just under one-third of that — 54 minutes — according to government data from 2019.

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More About Spouse

What does spouse mean?

Someone’s spouse is the person who they’re married to—their partner in marriage.

A spouse who’s a man is often called a husband, while a spouse who’s a woman is often called a wife. The word partner is a gender-neutral way to refer to one’s spouse. People most commonly use one of these terms when talking about or introducing their spouse, as opposed to using the word spouse. The word spouse is more commonly used in formal or official contexts, such as on forms that require family relations to be specified.

An adjective form of spouse is spousal, meaning relating to or involving marriage, as in Does this insurance plan provide spousal coverage?

Example: If you and your spouse file your taxes jointly, you may be eligible for certain rebates.

Where does spouse come from?

The first records of the word spouse come from the 1100s. It comes from the Latin terms spōnsus and spōnsa, meaning “betrothed man” and “betrothed woman.” These terms derive from the Latin verb spondēre, “to pledge.”

A spouse is the person who has pledged to wed another person and be united in marriage with that person, usually in some official way. This union is formally called wedlock. Fittingly, wed, wedlock, and wedding are all based on a word that means “pledge.”

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to spouse?

  • spousal (adjective)
  • spousehood (noun)

What are some synonyms for spouse?

What are some words that often get used in discussing spouse?

How is spouse used in real life?

Spouse is perhaps most commonly used in formal or official contexts as a way of referring to a marriage partner in a gender-neutral way.

 

Try using spouse!

Is spouse used correctly in the following sentence?

The event is open to employees and their spouses.

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