common-law marriage


noun

a marriage without a civil or ecclesiastical ceremony, generally resulting from an agreement to marry followed by the couple's living together.

Origin of common-law marriage

First recorded in 1905–10

Cultural definitions for common-law marriage

common-law marriage

A legal marriage brought about by the cohabitation of a man and a woman, or by their agreement to consider themselves married, rather than by a wedding. (See common law.)