Idioms are fun figures of speech where the words together have a different meaning than what they say literally. People use them every day to make speaking and writing much more colorful and exciting. In this article, you will learn fifty special expressions connected to lifelong commitment, wedding ceremonies, and marriage.
In this lesson, we’ll look at idioms that mean tying the knot, sharing a life together, or building a strong household. Let’s get started and explore some of these helpful expressions.
Idioms for Marriage
1. Tie the knot
Definition: To get married and officially begin a life journey together as spouses.
Definition: To get married and officially begin a life journey together as spouses.
Used in a Sentence: After dating for four years, my aunt and uncle decided to tie the knot on a sunny beach. / The happy couple chose to tie the knot surrounded by all their close friends and family members.
Similar Expressions: Get married / Walk down the aisle
2. Match made in heaven
Definition: A romantic pairing where two people are exceptionally well-suited for a lasting marriage.
Used in a Sentence: Everyone at the party agreed that their long and happy marriage was a match made in heaven. / Because they both love gardening and cooking, their partnership is truly a match made in heaven.
Similar Expressions: Perfect pair / Ideal match
3. Apple of my eye
Definition: Someone who is cherished, treasured, and loved above all other people in your life.
Used in a Sentence: Grandpa always told grandma that she remained the apple of his eye after fifty years of marriage. / Their partner is the apple of his eye during every family gathering and celebration.
Similar Expressions: Treasured person / Most beloved
4. Head over heels
Definition: Being deeply, completely, and passionately in love with your husband or wife.
Used in a Sentence: Even after celebrating their silver anniversary, they still acted head over heels for each other. / He fell head over heels the day they met, and that feeling never changed throughout their marriage.
Similar Expressions: Deeply in love / Madly devoted
5. Stand the test of time
Definition: A marriage or partnership that remains strong and loving through many years of challenges.
Used in a Sentence: Their commitment to supporting each other through every hardship proved to stand the test of time. / A strong marriage built on kindness and patience will always stand the test of time.
Similar Expressions: Remain strong / Last forever
6. Two peas in a pod
Definition: A married couple who are completely inseparable and share identical habits and hobbies.
Used in a Sentence: After thirty years together, my grandparents still do everything side by side like two peas in a pod. / Those two spouses are like two peas in a pod when it comes to organizing their home.
Similar Expressions: Inseparable pair / Perfect duo
7. Better half
Definition: An affectionate term used to refer to your spouse or husband and wife partner.
Used in a Sentence: He proudly introduced his better half to everyone at the neighborhood dinner party. / My mom and her better half have traveled to twenty different countries together during their marriage.
Similar Expressions: Spouse or partner / Significant other
8. Grow old gracefully
Definition: To age together happily, peacefully, and with continued love for one another.
Used in a Sentence: Watching my grandparents celebrate their golden wedding anniversary showed me what it means to grow old gracefully. / They promised to support each other and grow old gracefully through every season of life.
Similar Expressions: Age together / Mature happily
9. A labor of love
Definition: A major project or task done entirely out of deep affection for your family rather than money.
Used in a Sentence: Rebuilding the vintage porch swing for their wedding anniversary was a true labor of love. / Stitching the heirloom quilt by hand for their new home was a labor of love.
Similar Expressions: Passion project / Caring task
10. Heart of gold
Definition: Having an exceptionally kind, loving, and generous personality toward your spouse and household.
Used in a Sentence: Throughout their decades of marriage, she always showed a heart of gold by helping neighbors. / My husband has a heart of gold and surprises me with breakfast in bed every weekend.
Similar Expressions: Kind soul / Generous spirit
11. Ride off into the sunset
Definition: To move forward into a peaceful, happy, and long future together after the wedding day.
Used in a Sentence: After the reception ended, the newlyweds packed their bags to ride off into the sunset on their honeymoon. / They celebrated their anniversary ready to ride off into the sunset of a quiet life.
Similar Expressions: Move into peace / Happy future
12. Golden years
Definition: The happy, relaxed period of later life spent enjoying retirement with your husband or wife.
Used in a Sentence: My grandparents are spending their golden years traveling the world together now that their kids are grown. / Planning a quiet garden retreat helped them enjoy their golden years of marriage in comfort.
Similar Expressions: Retirement period / Later life
13. Hit a home run
Definition: To plan an exceptionally successful and memorable wedding reception or anniversary surprise.
Used in a Sentence: Taking her to Paris for their tenth wedding anniversary meant he really hit a home run. / Booking that cozy cabin in the mountains for their honeymoon was hitting a home run.
Similar Expressions: Succeed brilliantly / Plan perfectly
14. Soul mate
Definition: A person perfectly suited to another as a lifelong romantic partner, spouse, and best friend.
Used in a Sentence: Finding someone who shares all your dreams and values makes them feel like a true soul mate in marriage. / They celebrated thirty years of marriage knowing they found their soul mate early in life.
Similar Expressions: Kindred spirit / Perfect partner
15. The honeymoon phase
Definition: The early, exciting period of a new marriage filled with romance and discovery.
Used in a Sentence: During the first year of their marriage, they spent every weekend acting like they were still in the honeymoon phase. / Even after five years together, they still recalled the joy of the honeymoon phase.
Similar Expressions: Early romance / Blissful period
16. Hand in hand
Definition: Walking through life together as a united, married couple facing the world side by side.
Used in a Sentence: For forty years, my grandparents have walked hand in hand through every challenge of marriage. / They strolled down the boardwalk hand in hand to celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary.
Similar Expressions: United partners / Together always
17. Through thick and thin
Definition: Remaining loyal and loving in marriage through both good times and difficult hardships.
Used in a Sentence: Sticking together through thick and thin is the secret to their long and happy marriage. / They promised to support one another through thick and thin on their wedding day altar.
Similar Expressions: Through all challenges / Loyal always
18. Anchor of my life
Definition: A spouse who provides steady emotional support, security, and deep love during marriage.
Used in a Sentence: In his anniversary speech, he thanked his wife for being the anchor of his life. / Through every career change and house move, she remained the anchor of my life.
Similar Expressions: Steady support / Emotional rock
19. Tied to someone’s apron strings
Definition: Being exceptionally close, devoted, and attached to your loving husband or wife.
Used in a Sentence: After fifty years of marriage, they are still so close that people joke they are attached at the hip. / Their loyal devotion means they love spending every waking hour together in their marriage.
Similar Expressions: Deeply attached / Inseparable bond
20. Love makes the world go round
Definition: The belief that affection, kindness, and devotion are the most important forces in a family.
Used in a Sentence: Raising children together taught them that love makes the world go round in a happy home. / During his wedding toast, he reminded everyone that kindness and love make the world go round.
Similar Expressions: Affection rules / Kindness matters
21. Close to your heart
Definition: Someone or something that matters deeply and personally to your emotional marriage bond.
Used in a Sentence: The silver locket her husband gave her on their wedding day remains close to her heart. / Keeping family traditions alive is a value close to both of their hearts.
Similar Expressions: Dear to you / Deeply valued
22. Wrapped around someone’s finger
Definition: Being completely charmed, loved, and influenced by your husband or wife.
Used in a Sentence: After forty years of marriage, he is still completely wrapped around her finger. / She could convince him to take up any hobby because he is wrapped around her finger.
Similar Expressions: Deeply devoted / Charmed completely
23. Win someone’s heart
Definition: To continually earn the love, affection, and admiration of your spouse throughout marriage.
Used in a Sentence: Bringing home fresh flowers every Friday helped him keep winning her heart year after year. / His sweet anniversary notes continued to win her heart long after their wedding day.
Similar Expressions: Earn affection / Capture love
24. A rock solid foundation
Definition: A marriage built on strong trust, honesty, and deep commitment from both partners.
Used in a Sentence: Their silver anniversary proved they built their family on a rock solid foundation of trust. / Trust and open communication provide a rock solid foundation for any lasting marriage.
Similar Expressions: Strong base / Trustworthy start
25. Singing from the same hymn sheet
Definition: A married couple sharing the exact same goals, values, and vision for their household.
Used in a Sentence: When it came to planning their family budget, husband and wife were singing from the same hymn sheet. / Agreeing on parenting goals keeps the couple singing from the same hymn sheet.
Similar Expressions: Shared vision / Agreed goals
26. Madly in love
Definition: Experiencing an intense, passionate, and enduring romantic connection with your spouse.
Used in a Sentence: Celebrating their twentieth wedding anniversary, they still looked at each other like they were madly in love. / The wedding guests toasted the couple who remained madly in love after decades together.
Similar Expressions: Deeply romantic / Wildly devoted
27. Love nest
Definition: A cozy, private home shared by a newly married couple.
Used in a Sentence: They spent their honeymoon weekend relaxing together in their cozy cottage love nest. / After the wedding, the couple decorated their first apartment like a peaceful love nest.
Similar Expressions: Cozy home / Romantic haven
28. Swept off your feet
Definition: To be completely charmed and romanced by your partner, starting from the wedding day forward.
Used in a Sentence: He planned a surprise wedding proposal that completely swept her off her feet. / She was thrilled by the romantic gestures that kept her swept off her feet throughout their marriage.
Similar Expressions: Deeply charmed / Overwhelmed with romance
29. Sweetheart
Definition: An affectionate term for your spouse or husband and wife partner.
Used in a Sentence: Good morning, sweetheart, happy twentieth wedding anniversary to us, he whispered across the kitchen. / She handed the card to her sweetheart with a warm smile.
Similar Expressions: Beloved person / Dear partner
30. Wear your heart on your sleeve
Definition: Showing your tender, loving emotions openly and honestly for your spouse in marriage.
Used in a Sentence: He always wears his heart on his sleeve when thanking his wife during wedding anniversary toasts. / She is not afraid to wear her heart on her sleeve and express her deep marital devotion.
Similar Expressions: Openly emotional / Tender-hearted
31. Love match
Definition: A marriage formed entirely out of mutual affection, respect, and personal choice.
Used in a Sentence: Looking back at old wedding photos, everyone could see their union was a genuine love match. / Their fiftieth anniversary party celebrated a true lifelong love match.
Similar Expressions: True romance / Affectionate union
32. Burn with love
Definition: To feel an intense, warm flame of devotion burning inside your chest for your husband or wife.
Used in a Sentence: His heart burned with love as he read the wedding vows they wrote twenty years ago. / She felt her soul burn with gratitude for her husband’s constant support during their marriage.
Similar Expressions: Passionate warmth / Intense devotion
33. To have a soft spot in your heart
Definition: Holding a tender, forgiving affection for your partner’s little quirks in daily married life.
Used in a Sentence: Even when he forgets where his keys are, she has a soft spot in her heart for him. / After forty years of marriage, they still have a soft spot for each other’s silly jokes.
Similar Expressions: Tender affection / Warm regard
34. Make someone’s heart skip a beat
Definition: To cause your spouse a sudden rush of romantic excitement even after years of marriage.
Used in a Sentence: When he surprised her with flowers on their wedding anniversary, it made her heart skip a beat. / Hearing her voice across the room still makes his heart skip a beat.
Similar Expressions: Thrill someone / Excite the heart
35. Heart-to-heart
Definition: An honest, loving, and private conversation between a husband and wife.
Used in a Sentence: Every anniversary evening, they sit down on the porch for a quiet heart-to-heart chat about life. / Sharing a heart-to-heart discussion helped them plan their next decade of marriage together.
Similar Expressions: Honest chat / Open discussion
36. Love conquers all
Definition: The faithful belief that mutual devotion in marriage can overcome any family obstacle.
Used in a Sentence: When storms knocked out power on their wedding night, they laughed, knowing love conquers all. / They faced many financial hurdles in marriage, proving that true love conquers all.
Similar Expressions: Devotion wins / Affection overcomes
37. To set your heart on someone
Definition: Choosing your life partner with absolute certainty and dedication for marriage.
Used in a Sentence: He knew the moment he met her that he had set his heart on asking her to marry him. / Once she set her heart on building a marriage with him, nothing could change her mind.
Similar Expressions: Focus affection / Dedicate love
38. Catch someone’s eye
Definition: To still attract your partner’s loving attention across a crowded room during family events.
Used in a Sentence: Across the crowded wedding banquet hall, her bright dress managed to catch his eye. / After thirty years of marriage, a simple wink across the dinner table still catches her eye.
Similar Expressions: Attract attention / Spark interest
39. Be the light of my life
Definition: To bring immense joy, happiness, and love into your spouse’s world.
Used in a Sentence: In his wedding anniversary card, he wrote that his wife remained the light of his life. / She told her husband that his kind smile is the light of her life.
Similar Expressions: Bring great joy / Source of happiness
40. Sweet nothings
Definition: Tender, loving, and romantic whispering shared between a husband and wife at home.
Used in a Sentence: They danced slowly in the living room on their anniversary, whispering sweet nothings to each other. / Sitting on the porch swing, the married couple spent the evening sharing sweet nothings.
Similar Expressions: Tender whispers / Romantic talk
41. To hold someone dear
Definition: To value, cherish, and love your spouse deeply throughout your married life.
Used in a Sentence: Always hold your marriage partner dear to your heart through every changing season. / He held his wife dear, thanking her for decades of friendship and care.
Similar Expressions: Cherish deeply / Value greatly
42. To dote on someone
Definition: To shower your husband or wife with excessive love, attention, and pampering.
Used in a Sentence: He loves to dote on his wife by cooking her favorite meal every wedding anniversary. / They spent the weekend doting on each other during their romantic resort getaway.
Similar Expressions: Shower with love / Adore greatly
43. To be smitten
Definition: Remaining captivated and charmed by your spouse’s personality years into a marriage.
Used in a Sentence: He was still completely smitten by her laugh after twenty-five years of happy marriage. / Watching her paint, he looked as smitten as he did on their wedding day.
Similar Expressions: Deeply charmed / Captivated
44. To lavish affection on someone
Definition: To give generous amounts of hugs, kind words, and love to your husband or wife.
Used in a Sentence: Wedding anniversaries provide the perfect excuse to lavish affection on your spouse. / They love to lavish affection on each other with thoughtful gifts and notes.
Similar Expressions: Shower with care / Give heavy love
45. To warm someone’s heart
Definition: To make your husband or wife feel happy, loved, and filled with cozy emotion.
Used in a Sentence: Reading the old love letters from their wedding day twenty years ago warmed her heart instantly. / Seeing how much effort he put into the anniversary dinner warmed her heart.
Similar Expressions: Bring joy / Cause happiness
46. To cherish in your heart
Definition: To keep wedding day memories and deep marital affection safely treasured.
Used in a Sentence: She promised to cherish every wedding memory in her heart for the rest of her days. / He cherished the silver cufflinks from his wedding day in his heart.
Similar Expressions: Treasure forever / Guard with love
47. Walk down memory lane
Definition: A nostalgic trip looking through old wedding photo albums and videos together.
Used in a Sentence: Opening the wedding album on their anniversary felt like a sweet walk down memory lane. / Visiting the chapel where they married was a wonderful walk down memory lane for the couple.
Similar Expressions: Nostalgic trip / Remembering the past
48. Hitched for life
Definition: A fun, casual way to say you are happily married permanently.
Used in a Sentence: Celebrating their golden wedding anniversary proved they were truly hitched for life. / After exchanging rings fifty years ago, they knew they were hitched for life.
Similar Expressions: Married forever / Lifelong partners
49. A match made in heaven
Definition: Two people whose personalities blend together seamlessly in a blessed marriage.
Used in a Sentence: Everyone at the wedding reception toasted the bride and groom as a match made in heaven. / Their silver anniversary celebration highlighted what a wonderful match made in heaven they are.
Similar Expressions: Perfect pair / Ideal match
50. Milestone celebration
Definition: Marking a major, important marriage anniversary year with a grand gathering.
Used in a Sentence: Reaching fifty years of marriage called for a massive milestone celebration with family. / They planned a dinner party to mark the milestone celebration of their tenth wedding anniversary.
Similar Expressions: Major anniversary / Big party
Exercise to Practice
- After dating for four years, my aunt and uncle decided to tie the knot on a sunny beach.
- Everyone at the party agreed that their long and happy marriage was a match made in heaven.
- Grandpa always told grandma that she remained the apple of his eye after fifty years of marriage.
- Even after celebrating their silver anniversary, they still acted head over heels for a bicycle.
- Their commitment to supporting each other through every hardship proved to stand the test of time.
- After thirty years together, my grandparents still do everything side by side like two peas in a pod.
- He proudly introduced his better half to everyone at the neighborhood anniversary party.
- Watching my grandparents celebrate their golden jubilee showed me what it means to grow old gracefully.
- Rebuilding the vintage porch swing for their wedding anniversary was a true labor of love.
- Throughout their decades of marriage, she always showed a heart of gold by helping neighbors.
- After retiring from their jobs, the couple packed their bags to ride off into the sunset.
- My grandparents are spending their golden years traveling the world together on cruise ships.
- Taking her to Paris for their tenth anniversary meant he really hit a home run.
- Finding someone who shares all your dreams and values makes them feel like a true soul mate.
- On their tenth anniversary getaway, they felt like they stepped right back into the honeymoon phase by eating a sandwich.
Answer Key
- True
- True
- True
- False
- True
- True
- True
- True
- True
- True
- True
- True
- True
- True
- False
Conclusion
Learning these idioms helps you understand English much better and gives you fun new ways to talk about lifelong commitment, wedding ceremonies, and marriage. You can use them when describing romantic stories, writing wedding greeting cards, or chatting about lifelong relationships with your friends and family.
Try using one or two of these expressions in a conversation or a story this week. Not only will your writing sound more exciting, but you will also have fun practicing your new skills.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some common idioms for marriage?
Some common idioms include tie the knot, match made in heaven, and through thick and thin. These expressions are often used in everyday conversation and greeting cards to describe lifelong love and commitment.
Why do we use idioms in English?
Idioms make our language much more colorful, expressive, and fun than using plain words. They help us share big ideas and feelings in creative ways that people easily recognize.
How can I learn these idioms faster?
You can learn idioms faster by using them in daily sentences, writing short stories, and practicing with a friend. Making flashcards with pictures can also help you remember what each phrase means.
Are idioms used in everyday conversation?
Yes, native English speakers use idioms all the time during casual chats, television shows, and books. Learning them helps you understand jokes, stories, and conversations much more naturally.
Can idioms have more than one meaning?
Most idioms have one main accepted meaning, but how people use them can vary slightly depending on the context. Reading example sentences helps you see the exact way each phrase works.
