bridal
Americanadjective
noun
-
a wedding.
-
Archaic. a wedding feast.
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
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.
As a motif, Metsger said, citrus was associated with innocence, a favorite of bridal portraits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026
Shatz has also been invited to bachelorette parties even when she is not a member of a bridal party, or close to a bride.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
According to the official release, both the bride and groom sported Christian Dior Haute Couture, Christian Louboutin shoes, and Cartier jewelry—and neither had a bridal party.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 7, 2026
Thousands of them, dressed in cat ears, bridal gowns and elaborate floral headpieces.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
“I haven’t got any proper going-out dress,” she had said in apology when she called to tell him that she had nothing that looked convincingly bridal.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
