companionate marriage

American  

noun

1. a form of marriage in which the partners agree not to have children and can be divorced by mutual consent, leaving neither spouse legally responsible for the financial welfare of the other.

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Etymology

Origin of companionate marriage

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

“The idea of companionate marriage and love became a part of the calculus of marriage, and Valentine’s Day cards became a part of courtship,” she says.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 13, 2023

Golia: Historians talk about the rise of the modern companionate marriage: the way that marriage—which was formerly a matter of economic exchange—was, in the 20th century, leached of some of that transactional aspect.

From Slate • May 16, 2021

“Does it have to be through companionate marriage? Do you have to have an emotional connection with this particular person?”

From Washington Post • Dec. 23, 2019

And what is the idea of romantic companionate marriage, in all its crackpot “till death us do part” absolutism, if not a theory of everything?

From Slate • Nov. 6, 2014

I am opposed to companionate marriage ... to any thing except permanent monogamy.

From Time Magazine Archive