marry

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To enter into the conjugal or connubial state; to take a husband or a wife.

   Neither of her daughters showed any desire to marry.

2. 2
   verb

   To enter into marriage with one another.

   Jack and Jenny married soon after they met.

3. 3
   verb

   To take as husband or wife.

   In some cultures, it is acceptable for an uncle to marry his niece.

4. 4
   verb

   To arrange for the marriage of; to give away as wife or husband.

   He was eager to marry his daughter to a nobleman.

5. 5
   verb

   To unite in wedlock or matrimony; to perform the ceremony of joining spouses; to bring about a marital union according to the laws or customs of a place.

   A justice of the peace will marry Jones and Smith.

6. 6
   verb

   To join or connect. See also marry up.

   There’s a big gap here. These two parts don’t marry properly.

7. 7
   verb

   To unite; to join together into a close union.

   The attempt to marry medieval plainsong with speed metal produced interesting results.

8. 8
   intj

   A term of asseveration: indeed!, in truth!

   You that be of the court, & eſpecially ye ſworn chaplains beware of a leſſon that a great man taught me at my firſt coming to the court he told me for a good will, he thoughte it wel. He ſayd vnto me. You muſt beware how ſo euer ye do that ye cõtrary not the king, let him haue his ſaiyngs, folow him, go with him. Mary out vpon this counſel, ſhal I ſay, as he ſayes?

Etymology

From Middle English marien, from Anglo-Norman marïer, from Latin marītāre (“to wed”), from marītus (“husband, suitor”), from mās (“man, male”), of uncertain origin. Possibly from Proto-Indo-European *méryos (“young man”), same source as Sanskrit मर्य (márya, “suitor, young man”). Compare its feminine derivatives: Welsh morwyn (“girl”), merch (“daughter”), Crimean Gothic marzus (“wedding”), Ancient Greek μεῖραξ (meîrax, “boy; girl”), Lithuanian marti̇̀ (“bride”), Avestan 𐬨𐬀𐬌𐬭𐬌𐬌𐬀 (maⁱriia, “yeoman”).) Displaced native Old English hīwian.