bridal
Americanadjective
noun
-
a wedding.
-
Archaic. a wedding feast.
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
- bridally adverb
- prebridal adjective
Etymology
Origin of bridal
before 1100; Middle English bridale wedding feast, Old English brȳdealu, equivalent to brȳd bride 1 + ealu ale, i.e., ale-drinking; now taken as bride 1 + -al 1
Explanation
Use the adjective bridal to talk about a wedding or a bride. A bridal bouquet is the arrangement of flowers the bride carries during a wedding ceremony. Usually the word bridal describes anything having to do with a bride, like the bridal veil or the bridal party, or the bride's friends and family. Sometimes bridal refers to the newlywed couple, like the bridal suite they might stay in at a hotel on their honeymoon. Remember, bridal has nothing to do with horses — that's bridle, which sounds the same but means part of a harness.
Vocabulary lists containing bridal
Commonly Confused Words, List 2
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Commonly Confused Words, List 5
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Commonly Confused Words, List 7
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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.
I previously wrote to you about the problems I’m having with the maid of honor in my bridal party.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 30, 2026
“His longer-term strategy, Grow Brand Love, which focuses on driving growth in self-purchase and gifting through design-led product, while continuing to expand in bridal, appears to be gaining traction.”
From Barron's • Dec. 2, 2025
The fashion designer and bridal boutique owner sympathizes with retailers grappling with the penny problem.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 5, 2025
In the original, a proud redheaded pirate is the lead prisoner in a bridal auction, but today the “wench” has graduated to pirate status of her own and is helping to auction off stolen goods.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 5, 2025
In 1973, in a smuggled newspaper, we read about the wedding of Princess Anne and Mark Phillips, and the story detailed the bridal luncheon of rare and delicate dishes.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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.
