marry

[mar-ee]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR marry ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), mar·ried, mar·ry·ing.

to take in marriage: After dating for five years, I finally asked her to marry me.

to perform the marriage ceremonies for (two people); join in wedlock: The minister married Susan and Ed.

to give in marriage; arrange the marriage of (often followed by off): Her father wants to marry her to his friend's son. They want to marry off all their children before selling their big home.

to unite intimately: Common economic interests marry the two countries.

to take as an intimate life partner by a formal exchange of promises in the manner of a traditional marriage ceremony.

to combine, connect, or join so as to make more efficient, attractive, or profitable: The latest cameras marry automatic and manual features. A recent merger marries two of the nation's largest corporations.

Nautical.

to lay together (the unlaid strands of two ropes) to be spliced.
to seize (two ropes) together end to end for use as a single line.
to seize (parallel ropes) together at intervals.

to cause (food, liquor, etc.) to blend with other ingredients: to marry malt whiskey with grain whiskey.

verb (used without object), mar·ried, mar·ry·ing.

to wed.

(of two or more foods, wines, etc.) to combine suitably or agreeably; blend: This wine and the strong cheese just don't marry.

Origin of marry

1250–1300; Middle English marien < Old French marier < Latin marītāre to wed, derivative of marītus conjugal, akin to mās male (person)

Related formsmar·ri·er, nounnon·mar·ry·ing, adjectiveun·mar·ry·ing, adjective

Can be confusedmarry Mary merry

marry

[mar-ee]

interjection Archaic.

(used as an exclamation of surprise, astonishment, etc.)

Origin of marry

1325–75; Middle English; euphemistic variant of Mary (the Virgin)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for marry

catch, join, wed, pledge, relate, promise, conjugate, unite, mate, combine, tie, ally, associate, couple, conjoin, yoke, knit, land, unify, contract

Examples from the Web for marry

Contemporary Examples of marry

That man was Xavier Cortada, a gay man who wrote of his frustration that he and his partner of eight years were unable to marry.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails
Jackie Kucinich
January 9, 2015
The star announces he is to marry his 27-year-old boyfriend.
Meet Stephen Fry’s Future Husband (Who Is Less Than Half His Age)
Tom Sykes
January 6, 2015
It happened on Glee and in Sex and The City, and now in Japan women can marry themselves.
Why Singles Should Say ‘I Don’t’ to The Self-Marriage Movement
Tim Teeman
December 30, 2014
Most critically, the split perspectives of Noah and Alison need to marry more elegantly.
What On Earth Is ‘The Affair’ About? Season One’s Baffling Finale
Tim Teeman
December 22, 2014
Hearst is to be released from prison and is planning to marry.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days
David Freeman
December 13, 2014

Historical Examples of marry

Should you have thought she'd marry so soon after her divorce?
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
He seems too decent to marry that way—and yet it's the only way I could marry him.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
She'd marry me—she'd marry you, if you was the best thing in sight.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
She wa'n't meant fur it—and I'd rather have her marry an American, anyhow.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
The only member of that household I could marry is not suited to my age.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson

British Dictionary definitions for marry

marry

verb -ries, -rying or -ried

to take (someone as one's partner) in marriage

(tr) to join or give in marriage

(tr) to acquire (something) by marriagemarry money

to unite closely or intimately

(tr sometimes foll by up) to fit together or align (two things); join

(tr) nautical

to match up (the strands) of unlaid ropes before splicing
to seize (two ropes) together at intervals along their lengths

Word Origin for marry

C13: from Old French marier, from Latin marītāre, from marītus married (man), perhaps from mās male

marry

interjection

archaic an exclamation of surprise, anger, etc

Word Origin for marry

C14: euphemistic for the Virgin Mary

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for marry

c.1300, "to give (offspring) in marriage," from Old French marier "to get married; to marry off, give in marriage; to bring together in marriage," from Latin maritare "to wed, marry, give in marriage" (source of Italian maritare, Spanish and Portuguese maridar), from maritus (n.) "married man, husband," of uncertain origin, originally a past participle, perhaps ultimately from "provided with a *mari," a young woman, from PIE root *mari- "young wife, young woman," akin to *meryo- "young man" (cf. Sanskrit marya- "young man, suitor").

Meaning "to get married, join (with someone) in matrimony" is early 14c. in English, as is that of "to take in marriage." Said from 1520s of the priest, etc., who performs the rite. Figurative use from early 15c. Related: Married; marrying. Phrase the marrying kind, describing one inclined toward marriage and almost always used with a negative, is attested by 1824, probably short for marrying kind of men, which is from a popular 1756 essay by Chesterfield.

In some Indo-European languages there were distinct "marry" verbs for men and women, though some of these have become generalized. Cf. Latin ducere uxorem (of men), literally "to lead a wife;" nubere (of women), perhaps originally "to veil" [Buck]. Also cf. Old Norse kvangask (of men) from kvan "wife" (cf. quean), so "take a wife;" giptask (of women), from gipta, a specialized use of "to give" (cf. gift (n.)) so "to be given."

interj.

a common oath in the Middle Ages, mid-14c., now obsolete, a corruption of the name of the Virgin Mary.