marry

play

verb mar·ry \ˈmer-ē, ˈma-rē\

Definition of marry

married

;

marrying

transitive verb
1a : to join in marriage according to law or customb : to give in marriage married his daughter to his partner's sonc : to take as spouse : wed married the girl next doord : to perform the ceremony of marriage for a priest will marry theme : to obtain by marriage marry wealth
2 : to unite in close and usually permanent relation
intransitive verb
1 : to take a spouse : wed He first married at twenty.
2 : combine, unite seafood marries with other flavors

marry into

: to become a member of by marriage married into a prominent family

See marry defined for English-language learners

See marry defined for kids

Examples of marry in a Sentence

He married his college sweetheart.
I asked her to marry me.
“Will you marry me?” “Yes, I will.”
They married for love, not money.
The minister has married more than 100 couples.
They hope to have a priest marry them.
They were married by a justice of the peace.

Recent Examples of marry from the Web

Several weeks later, Scarborough visited Trump at the White House, where Trump offered to marry Scarborough and Brzezinski at the White House.

— sarah quinlan, National Review, "Joe Scarborough, Fake Anti-Trumper," 20 July 2017
The Star Tribune reported that she was engaged to be married in August and was using her fiance's last name.

— Bloomberg.com, "Questions Remain Surrounding Fatal Minnesota Police Shooting," 18 July 2017
If an ambitious women’s studies major decided that her thesis would be a movie in which film-noir tropes of the femme fatale are married to a denunciation of the patriarchy, the result might be very close to William Oldroyd’s Lady Macbeth.

— charles taylor, MSNBC Newsweek, "Cannes' Favorite 'Lady Macbeth' Isn't Daring, but It Might Be Racist," 17 July 2017
The Dancing With the Stars judge married NHL star Brooks Laich in an intimate, outdoor wedding on Saturday near Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

— julie jordan, EW.com, "Wedding with the stars! Julianne Hough marries NHL pro Brooks Laich," 9 July 2017
The couple married in 1982, and share three children together: Kelly, 32, Jack, 31, and Aimee, 33.

— alexia fernandez, PEOPLE.com, "After a Rough Patch, Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne Celebrate 35 Years of Marriage," 5 July 2017
Newlyweds are now over five times as likely as in the 1960s to be married to a spouse of a different race or ethnicity.

— ronald brownstein, CNN, "How accelerating change is deepening our political divisions," 5 July 2017
Women were allowed to choose to be home with their kids without guilt or government penalty, and people still got married and protected the institution of the traditional family.

— annika hernroth-rothstein, National Review, "A Love Letter to America," 4 July 2017
The talented couple got married in 1999, meaning that 2017 marks their 18th wedding anniversary.

— amy mackelden, Harper's BAZAAR, "David and Victoria Beckham Celebrated Their 18th Wedding Anniversary in Style," 4 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'marry.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of marry

Middle English marien, from Anglo-French marier, from Latin maritare, from maritus married

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

marry

interjection mar·ry

Definition of marry

archaic

—used for emphasis and especially to express amused or surprised agreement

Origin and Etymology of marry

Middle English marie, from Marie, the Virgin Mary

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

MARRY Defined for English Language Learners

marry

play

verb

Definition of marry for English Language Learners

: to become the husband or wife of (someone) : to become joined with (someone) in marriage
: to perform a ceremony in which two people get married
: to find a husband or wife for (your child)