domestic partner

American  

[duh-mes-tik pahrt-ner] / dəˈmɛs tɪk ˈpɑrt nər /

noun

1. either member of an unmarried, cohabiting heterosexual or gay couple whose relationship status grants certain legal rights and protections similar to those of spouses.

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Other Word Forms

• domestic partnership
  noun

Etymology

Origin of domestic partner

First recorded in 1975–80

Example Sentences

Adding unpaid labor onto one’s daily workload is draining and, provided your domestic partner is open to ameliorating the imbalance, solvable.

From Salon • Apr. 23, 2026

If your name is not listed on the residency documents you can use a birth certificate, marriage license or domestic partner registration document to prove your relationship with the person listed on the residency document.

From Los Angeles Times • May 24, 2024

Such an order typically requires a court finding that the person “represents a credible threat” to a domestic partner.

From Slate • Jun. 23, 2023

Another described a nurse referring to her domestic partner, now husband, as a “baby daddy.”

From New York Times • May 6, 2023

It would be just as safe and sensible for the merchant to neglect his cash book, as for his domestic partner, who undertakes to do her business properly, to fail to keep her cash book.

From The Continental Monthly, Vol. 6, No 3, September 1864 Devoted To Literature And National Policy by Various