wed

The word “wed” means to marry someone, or to conduct a marriage ceremony joining two people. In plain terms, to marry, or to become firmly attached to an idea or plan.

“Wed” is pronounced WEHD (/ˈwɛd/ in IPA).

Here is “wed” used in a sentence: “They wed in a small ceremony attended only by close family.”

Words with a similar meaning to “wed” include marry.

“Wed” is a verb.

The word “wed” comes from Old English. From Old English weddian ("to pledge, to wed"), from a Germanic root meaning "pledge" — related to "wage" and "engage".

“Wed” is an uncommon word in modern English, usually learned at around the B2 level.

“Wed” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: to marry someone, or to conduct a marriage ceremony joining two people.

Wed and married both describe the act of joining two people in marriage, but wed is often used in more formal, journalistic, or literary contexts, as in "the couple wed last spring." Married is the more common everyday term for the same event.

Yes, wed can mean to commit permanently to something, as if bound to it by marriage, such as "he was wed to the idea of reform." This figurative sense extends the marriage meaning to describe strong, lasting attachment to a plan, belief, or cause.

Wed can function as its own past tense, as in "they wed in June," though "wedded" is also an accepted past tense and past participle form. Both forms appear in standard usage, with "wed" being more common in news headlines for brevity.