Jump To:

• bride
  bride

  noun

  a newly married woman or a woman about to be married.
• Bride
  Bride

  noun

  Saint. Brigid, Saint.

bride

¹ American  

[brahyd] / braɪd /

noun

1. a newly married woman or a woman about to be married.

---

bride ² American  

[brahyd, breed] / braɪd, brid /

noun

1. Also called bar, leg, tie.  a connection consisting of a thread or a number of threads for joining various solid parts of a design in needlepoint lace.

2. an ornamental bonnet string.

---

Bride ³ American  

[brahyd] / braɪd /

noun

1. Saint. Brigid, Saint.

---

Bride ¹ British  

/ braɪd /

noun

1. See Bridget

---

bride ² British  

/ braɪd /

noun

1. a woman who has just been or is about to be married

---

bride ³ British  

/ braɪd /

noun

1. Also called: bar.  lacemaking needlework a thread or loop that joins parts of a pattern

---

bride Idioms  

1. see give away (the bride).

---

Other Word Forms

• brideless
  adjective
• bridelike
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of bride¹

before 1000; Middle English; Old English brȳd; cognate with Dutch bruid, German Braut, Old Norse brūthr, Gothic brūths

Origin of bride²

1865–70; < French: bonnet-string, bridle, Old French < Germanic; see bridle

Example Sentences

As a director, his output included classic films like 1984's rock music mockumentary "This is Spinal Tap," fantasy gem "The Princess Bride" from 1987, and seminal coming-of-age movie "Stand By Me."

From Barron's • Apr. 24, 2026

Meanwhile, Rebel Wilson won worst actress for "her not-quite-believable performance as an action hero in Bride Hard with weaponised curling irons".

From BBC • Mar. 14, 2026

Buckley plays both the Bride and the ghost of Mary Shelley.

From Salon • Mar. 8, 2026

What she presents is more like the world’s campiest cabaret act, with the Bride as a mashup of Katharine Hepburn, Marlene Dietrich, Bette Davis and maybe Natasha Lyonne.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026

Which is how you have to think of me when I came upon The Princess Bride.

From "The Princess Bride" by William Goldman

Related Words

• bride-to-be
• newlywed