out of wedlock

Idioms and Phrases

Of parents not legally married, as in Over the centuries many royal children were born out of wedlock . The noun wedlock , for the state of being married, is rarely heard today except in this phrase, first recorded in 1675; its converse, in wedlock , dates from the 1300s and is even more rarely used.

Example Sentences

I wouldn't be surprised to see out-of-wedlock childbearing follow a similar course.

From The Daily Beast

Audiences always applaud when he rails against out-of-wedlock childbirth.

From The Daily Beast

Divorce, out-of-wedlock births, and low labor force participation are expensive.

From The Daily Beast

What caused the schism over the out-of-wedlock birth was never explained.

From The Daily Beast

Why, exactly, are the media outing the woman who gave birth to the out-of-wedlock son?

From The Daily Beast