prenuptial agreement

noun

variants or less commonly prenup

ˈprē-ˌnəp 

or prenuptial

: an agreement made between two people before marrying that establishes rights to property and support in the event of divorce or death

Prenuptial agreements have long been used by couples who want to set down the terms of any future divorce before they walk down the aisle.

—Desa Philadelphia

Even though there's a prenup, it's unclear how much of Liz's money Fortensky will end up with …

—Newsweek

Examples of prenuptial agreement in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The rise in prenuptial agreements is likely to actually protect many Americans from their partner’s debt in the long term, experts say. —Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Nov. 2025

The purse designer took Costner to court over child support and the validity of their prenuptial agreement. —Janelle Ash, FOXNews.com, 13 Nov. 2025

The documents state that the former couple had a prenuptial agreement dated Dec 11, 2017. —Ingrid Vasquez, PEOPLE, 4 Nov. 2025

Sheena Douglass, a divorced single mom of three, deeply regrets not signing a prenuptial agreement. —Essence, 22 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1882, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for prenuptial agreement

• disagreement

Legal Definition

prenuptial agreement

noun

pre·​nup·​tial agreement

prē-ˈnəp-shəl-, -chəl-

: antenuptial agreement