noun
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a formal invalidation, as of a marriage, judicial proceeding, etc
-
the act of annulling
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of annulment
Explanation
An annulment is the cancellation of revocation of something, like a marriage. After an annulment, it's like the marriage never happened. The root nul (from Latin nullum) of this word is a good clue to its meaning: the underlying verb annul originally meant "reduce to nothing." An annulment also reduces something to nothing by canceling or terminating it, usually in a legal sense. The most common use of the term is the annulment of a marriage, which not only ends the marriage, but legally makes it as if the marriage never happened. Annulment is like a legal eraser.
Vocabulary lists containing annulment
The Renaissance and Reformation, Lessons 5–6
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Notes of a Native Son
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Cold Sassy Tree
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He does not even bother to tell her he has left, letting her find out from a letter petitioning for an annulment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 26, 2026
The annulment of the PPC contract was requested last year by the office of the comptroller -- an autonomous body that examines how government money is spent.
From Barron's ● Jan. 30, 2026
Human Rights Watch also recently called for "the annulment of the unjust sentences", denouncing "unfounded accusations".
From Barron's ● Nov. 27, 2025
Bolojan himself took on the role of interim president last February because of the scandal surrounding the annulment of the presidential vote.
From BBC ● May 5, 2025
The assembly was greatly alarmed and directed its agents to seek the annulment of this patent also.
From The Colonization of North America 1492-1783 by Bolton, Herbert Eugene
Still, over 49% of flights from Boston Logan were cancelled Tuesday morning, with similar high annulments at LaGuardia and Newark Liberty.
From Barron's ● Feb. 24, 2026
The Roman Catholic Church operates tribunals that consider spiritual issues and marriage annulments.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2025
In some videos, the inmates are given papers described as pardons or annulments of convictions.
From New York Times ● Jan. 30, 2023
The approach has scored Francis some victories, such as bypassing conservative bishops to streamline the procedures by which Catholics can obtain marriage annulments.
From Reuters ● Oct. 26, 2016
And to think we were talking about annulments!...
From The Rose-Garden Husband by Widdemer, Margaret
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
