: of or relating to a bride or a wedding : nuptial
2
: intended for a newly married couple
a bridal suite
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A secondary meaning of Old English ealu, the ancestor of Modern English ale, was “feast, banquet,” at which the drinking of ale was a prominent activity. There were a number of these feasts and banquets that survived into the 19th century, but the oldest and best-established was the bride-ale, or wedding feast, attested in Old English as brydealu. In Middle English the ale half of the word had lost its stress and was associated with the noun suffix –al (as in funeral) and the adjective suffix (as in parental). By the 18^th^ century, bridal was perceived primarily as an adjective, as it is today.
Go to the bridal shows and put your name down for the raffles!—Kailyn Brown, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2024 Related Articles The brand is rooted in bridal and has seen growing demand in the category, Gerstein said, with double-digit growth in the first quarter of this year.—Layla Ilchi, WWD, 13 June 2024
Adjective
Merchant’s bridal ensemble was designed by Indian label Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla and featured ivory zardozi (an elaborate type of metal embroidery) on silk and a 5-meter (16.4-foot) veil.—Rhea Mogul, CNN, 15 July 2024 Baby’s Breath Crown A short Afro adorned with a baby’s breath crown makes for an ethereal bridal hairstyle.—Annie Blay, Allure, 9 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for bridal
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bridal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English bridale, from Old English brȳdealu, from brȳd + ealu ale — more at ale
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above
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