Well, we just looked at a dictionary, that was written in 1986, pre-debate -
Marriage: 1. the state of being married; relation between husband and wife; married life; wedlock; matrimony 2. the acting of marrying; wedding 3. the rite or form used in marrying 4. any close or intimate union 5. the king and queen of a suit, as in pinochle.
SYN - marriage refers to the state of, or relation between, a man and woman who have become husnad and wife or to the ceremony marking this union; matrimony, a formal word, applies specifically to the religious sacrament of marriage and stresses the rights and obligations of the marriage state; wedlock now applies specifically to marriage a legal relationship.
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branchandroot
(no subject)
Date: 2009-09-06 11:18 pm (UTC)Marriage: 1. the state of being married; relation between husband and wife; married life; wedlock; matrimony 2. the acting of marrying; wedding 3. the rite or form used in marrying 4. any close or intimate union 5. the king and queen of a suit, as in pinochle.
SYN - marriage refers to the state of, or relation between, a man and woman who have become husnad and wife or to the ceremony marking this union; matrimony, a formal word, applies specifically to the religious sacrament of marriage and stresses the rights and obligations of the marriage state; wedlock now applies specifically to marriage a legal relationship.