Synonyms: marriage, matrimony, holy matrimony, married state More Synonyms of wedlock
2.
See born in/out of wedlock
wedlock in British English
(ˈwɛdlɒk)
noun
1.
the state of being married
2. born out of wedlock
Word origin
Old English wedlāc, from wedd pledge + -lāc, suffix denoting activity, perhaps from lāc game, battle (related to Gothic laiks dance, Old Norse leikr)
wedlock in American English
(ˈwɛdˌlɑk)
noun
the state of being married; matrimony
Word origin
ME wedlok < OE wedlac < wed, a compact, pledge + -lac, an offering, gift, akin to ON leikr, play, Goth laiks, a dance < IE base *leig-, to leap, hop > Sans rḗjatē, (he) hops
Examples of 'wedlock' in a sentence
wedlock
Births out of wedlock were a source of shame.
The Sun (2012)
(noun)
Definition
the state of being married
Her parents' divorce has given her a jaundiced view of wedlock.