antenuptial

American  

[an-tee-nuhp-shuhl, ‑chuhl] / ˌæn tiˈnʌp ʃəl, ‑tʃəl /

adjective

1. before marriage.

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Pronunciation

See nuptial.

Usage

What does antenuptial mean? Antenuptial means before marriage. The word prenuptial means the same thing and is much more commonly used. Prenuptial is especially used in the term prenuptial agreement, which refers to a legal contract entered into by a couple before marriage that specifies things like the division of their finances and assets, especially in case the marriage ends, such as through divorce. Prenuptial agreements are far more commonly referred to with the informal term prenup. The terms antenuptial agreement and antenuptial marriage contract mean the same thing as prenuptial agreement, but they are much less commonly used. The word antenuptial is sometimes used as a noun to refer to such contracts. Example: Everyone thought it was strange that we had an antenuptial agreement, but life is unpredictable.

Etymology

Origin of antenuptial

First recorded in 1810–20; ante- + nuptial