common-law marriage

American  

noun

1. a marriage without a civil or ecclesiastical ceremony, generally resulting from an agreement to marry followed by the couple's living together.

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common-law marriage Cultural  

1. A legal marriage brought about by the cohabitation of a man and a woman, or by their agreement to consider themselves married, rather than by a wedding. (See common law.)

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Etymology

Origin of common-law marriage

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

No, because the federal government does not recognize common-law marriage either.

From Slate • Jul. 27, 2022

Balandina and Vasyliv are a longtime couple with two children who had already had a common-law marriage before Monday’s civil ceremony at the Lviv Surgery Center.

From Los Angeles Times • May 3, 2022

If you like good food, civil unrest, high art, common-law marriage, beautiful architecture and endemic corruption: bienvenue!

From The Guardian • Jun. 30, 2017

Lawmakers here are considering a bill that would dub the ukulele the official state instrument, a designation that seems in some ways like a formal ceremony for a common-law marriage.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 13, 2014

The common people seldom marry except, as we would term it, by the common-law marriage.

From A Woman's Impression of the Philippines by Fee, Mary Helen