domestic partner

American  

[duh-mes-tik pahrt-ner] / dəˈmɛs tɪk ˈpɑrt nər /

noun

1. either member of an unmarried, cohabiting heterosexual or gay couple whose relationship status grants certain legal rights and protections similar to those of spouses.

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Other Word Forms

• domestic partnership
  noun

Etymology

Origin of domestic partner

First recorded in 1975–80

Example Sentences

The friend suspected her former domestic partner, Alfred “Al” Labrada, who was then an assistant chief in the Los Angeles Police Department, had secretly planted the AirTag to monitor her movements after they broke up.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 9, 2025

Wagoner was also one of the attorneys who represented a divorced Arkansas man who had been prohibited from having overnight visitation with his child in the presence of his long-term domestic partner.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 25, 2024

Ask about the maximum amount the policy will pay out and if the benefits can be shared by a domestic partner or spouse.

From New York Times • Nov. 22, 2023

Such an order typically requires a court finding that the person “represents a credible threat” to a domestic partner.

From Slate • Jun. 23, 2023

It would be just as safe and sensible for the merchant to neglect his cash book, as for his domestic partner, who undertakes to do her business properly, to fail to keep her cash book.

From The Continental Monthly, Vol. 6, No 3, September 1864 Devoted To Literature And National Policy by Various