Standard Lemma guide

nuptials

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈnʌp.ʃəlz/
  • /ˈnʌp.t͡ʃ(ʊ)əlz/ influenced by words ending in -tual, sometimes proscribed
  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: N AH1 P CH AH0 L Z Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A wedding ceremony.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: plural, plural-only

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

the social event at which the ceremony of marriage is performed

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: wedding, wedding ceremony, hymeneals

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: ceremony, ceremonial, ceremonial occasion, observance

History

Etymology

From nuptial, borrowed from Latin nūptiālis (“pertaining to marriage”), from nūptiae (“wedding”) (also plural only), from nūpta, from nūbō (“to marry, to take as husband”), from Proto-Indo-European *sneubho-, *snewbh- (“to marry, wed”). Cognate with French noces and Italian nozze.

Across languages

Translations

19 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Armenian: հարսանիք (harsanikʻ) — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Finnish: häät — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • French: noces — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Georgian: ქორწილი (korc̣ili) — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Hungarian: nász — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Italian: nozze — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Persian: سور (sur) — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Polish: zaślubiny — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Polish: ślub — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Polish: wesele — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Portuguese: núpcias — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Russian: бракосочета́ние (brakosočetánije) — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Slovene: poroka — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Spanish: nupcias — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Swedish: bröllop — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Swedish: vigsel — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Ottoman Turkish: دوگون (düğün) — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Ottoman Turkish: سور (sur) — wedding ceremony — see also wedding
  • Ottoman Turkish: عرس (ʼurs) — wedding ceremony — see also wedding