mail-order bride

American  

[meyl-awr-der brahyd] / ˈmeɪlˌɔr dər ˌbraɪd /

noun

1. a woman who solicits or accepts a contractual marriage arranged by an agency or brokerage after a period of long-distance courtship, traditionally by written correspondence.

---

Etymology

Origin of mail-order bride

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

I was a reverse mail-order bride, born in Belarus, now an American.

From Los Angeles Times

Poor Hank, inevitably stood up by his mail-order bride.

From New York Times

“She outlived all these kings and she was supposed to be just a mail-order bride. She ended up ruling over everybody.”

From Seattle Times

The plot, set in frostbitten Wisconsin in 1907, was about a widower seeking a practical and homely mail-order bride and instead getting an ominous beauty.

From Washington Post

Mrs. MacLachlan said the book was inspired by a story her mother had told her about a “wonderful woman who came into the family” as a mail-order bride.

From Washington Post