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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.
Examples of bridal in a Sentence
Lauren Fisher, Footwear News, 3 June 2026
Lipa began micro-dosing bridal dressing shortly after, stunning in a white off-the-shoulder dress during a family outing in May, a keyhole cutout gown at Schiaparelli's Paris Fashion Week show in July, and a side boob-baring frock during a trip to Miami in September.
—Christina Perrier, InStyle, 31 May 2026
Ashlyn Robinette, PEOPLE, 2 June 2026
As courthouse ceremonies, intimate weddings and destination elopements continue to rise in popularity, bridal fashion has increasingly moved toward individuality and self-expression over tradition.
—Lauren Fisher, Footwear News, 1 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for bridal
Cite this Entry
“Bridal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bridal. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
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