Wedlocks

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A legal or formal union between two individuals, often recognized by religious or cultural practices
2. the state of being married and the responsibilities or rights associated with this bond
3. a term that can refer to the commitments and vows made during the marriage ceremony

Etymology: "Wedlocks" is simply the plural of "wedlock," so its story is really the story of the singular noun. Wedlock began in Old English as "wedlāc," a compound of "wedd," meaning pledge or vow (the same root as "wed"), and "-lāc," a word for a sport, offering, or gift, which gave the sense of a pledge being made or a formal act. Together the parts described a marriage vow, a solemn promise exchanged between two people. Over the Middle English period the word softened. Forms like "wedlok" and "wedlocke" appeared with the meaning of marriage itself, not just the promise that sealed it, and the older "-lāc" element came to look like the familiar English "-lock" ending, with no link to the modern lock on a door. The noun's meaning shifted from the act of pledging to the condition of being married.

Synonyms: marriages, unions, couplings, alliances, partnerships

Antonyms: divorces, separations, dissolutions, breakups, split-ups