Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1200-1300
Language: French
Origin: mariage, from marier; MARRY

marriage

 noun
     
mar‧riage S2 W2
1 [uncountable and countable] the relationship between two people who are married, or the state of being marriedCOLLOCATIONS COLLOCATIONS
happy/unhappy marriage mixed marriage (=between people of different races or religions) arranged marriage (=your parents choose the person who you marry) loveless marriage a marriage breaks down (=it ends because of disagreements) the breakdown/break-up of your marriage (=the end of your marriage) sex before marriage/outside marriage be born outside marriage (=be born when your parents are not married) propose marriage formal (=ask someone to marry you) consummate a marriage (=make your marriage complete by having sex) annul a marriage formal (=a court or church leader officially ends a marriage)
She has three daughters from a previous marriage.
One in three marriages ends in divorce.
marriage to
his marriage to Marilyn Monroe
marriage between
In Denmark they have legalized marriage between gay couples.
They have a very happy marriage.
children of mixed marriages
Women were often forced into arranged marriages.
She felt trapped in a loveless marriage.
She moved to London after the break-up of her marriage.
My parents disapprove of sex before marriage.
More than half of all births in the region are outside marriage.
2 [countable] the ceremony in which two people get married [= wedding]:
The marriage took place at St Bartholomew's church.
3

by marriage

SSF if you are related to someone by marriage, they are married to someone in your family, or you are married to someone in theirs:
her cousin by marriage
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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