plus-one

noun

ˈpləs-ˈwən 

: a person who accompanies an invited guest to an event or gathering at which guests are allowed to bring a companion or partner

My husband twice received handsome engraved invitations to presidential dinners. For those events and many others, I was the perpetual plus-one.

—Ana Marie Cox

Examples of plus-one in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Scott, who works for the City of Orlando managing contracts for youth programs, nearly won the race outright in August, but fell just shy of the necessary 50-plus-one vote needed to clinch re-election in the primary. — Ryan Gillespie, The Orlando Sentinel, 3 Nov. 2026

While the guest list was ostensibly restricted to guests who, like the Rear Window star, were born under the zodiac sign of Scorpio, non-Scorpios were allowed as plus-ones. — Diego Parrado, Vanity Fair, 25 Oct. 2026

The 2025 ceremony doubled as a mother-son date for Klum, who brought then-20-year-old Henry Samuel as her plus-one. — Christina Perrier, InStyle, 16 Oct. 2026

Each establishment determines the experiences offered to Inside members and his or her plus-one. — Miles Socha, Footwear News, 5 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1977, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for plus-one

• begun
• grandson
• gudrun
• handgun
• homespun
• outdone
• outrun
• pashtun
• redone
• rerun
• shotgun
• someone