WEDDING

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does wedding mean? 

• WEDDING (noun)
  The noun WEDDING has 3 senses:

1. the social event at which the ceremony of marriage is performed

2. the act of marrying; the nuptial ceremony

3. a party of people at a wedding

  Familiarity information: WEDDING used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• WEDDING (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The social event at which the ceremony of marriage is performed

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Synonyms:

hymeneals; nuptials; wedding; wedding ceremony

Hypernyms ("wedding" is a kind of...):

ceremonial; ceremonial occasion; ceremony; observance (a formal event performed on a special occasion)

Derivation:

wed (perform a marriage ceremony)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The act of marrying; the nuptial ceremony

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

marriage; marriage ceremony; wedding

Context example:

their marriage was conducted in the chapel

Hypernyms ("wedding" is a kind of...):

rite; ritual (any customary observance or practice)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "wedding"):

bridal; espousal (archaic terms for a wedding or wedding feast)

civil marriage (a marriage performed by a government official rather than by a clergyman)

love match (a marriage for love's sake; not an arranged marriage)

remarriage (the act of marrying again)

Derivation:

wed (take in marriage)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A party of people at a wedding

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Synonyms:

wedding; wedding party

Hypernyms ("wedding" is a kind of...):

party (a group of people gathered together for pleasure)

Meronyms (members of "wedding"):

best man (the principal groomsman at a wedding)

bride (a woman participant in her own marriage ceremony)

bridesmaid; maid of honor (an unmarried woman who attends the bride at a wedding)

flower girl (a young girl who carries flowers in a (wedding) procession)

bridegroom; groom (a man participant in his own marriage ceremony)

groomsman (a male attendant of the bridegroom at a wedding)

trainbearer (one who holds up the train of a gown or robe on a ceremonial occasion)

 Context examples 

Traddles and Sophy, and Doctor and Mrs. Strong, were the only guests at our quiet wedding.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

I must tell you of my wedding present.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

Oh! the best nature in the world—a wedding.

(Emma, by Jane Austen)

Did you see Miss Doran on the day before the wedding?

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

One day, just before the wedding, my grandfather was flying out with his band when he saw Quelala walking beside the river.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

Her second sister was soon after married, and when Lily was asked to go to the wedding, she said to the prince, “I will not go alone this time—you must go with me.”

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

A whole year has gone by since we learned we loved each other, and our wedding day is no nearer.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

It was only the day before our wedding that she said those very words to me.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

And as for wedding clothes, do not let them wait for that, but tell Lydia she shall have as much money as she chooses to buy them, after they are married.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

You may be attending a friend’s wedding, charity benefit, or another celebratory event.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)