If someone has a fiance, what do they mean? This article will define the meaning of fiance and teach you how to use it in a sentence.
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Kevin
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April 7, 2022
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Do you know the difference between a fiance and a fiancee? Do you know what the word fiance means? This article will explain what the word fiance means, the difference between fiance and fiancee, and provide additional information related to the word fiance.
What Does Fiance Mean?
Dictionary states that the word fiance is a noun that refers to a man engaged to be married. Fiance can also be spelled fiancé, with an accent over the “e.” Fiancee has two different word forms and spellings depending on the gender of the person who is engaged. A man is known as a fiance or fiancé, and a woman is known as a fiancée or fiancee.
Often, the word fiancé can be a gender-neutral term. However, other people might use words like betrothed, engaged, or spouse-to-be.
Both fiance and fiancee are spelled differently but pronounced the same way. The pronunciation of fiance is fɪˈɒnseɪ. Fiance is three syllables (fi-an-ce), not two syllables (fi-ance).
What Is the Etymology of the Word Fiance?
According to Dictionary, the word fiance (fiˈɑnseɪ) began usage in the 1850s. This word comes directly from the French fiancé, which means betrothed. The French word is the past participle of fiancer, which comes from the Old French fiancier.
Verbally, this derives from the word fiance, meaning “a promise” from the Vulgar Latin fīdāre and Latin fīdere.
How Can We Use Fiance in a Sentence?
The word fiance is a common term used when discussing marriage or engagement. First, study the example sentences and conversations below, including the word fiance. Then, try using the word fiance as a word of the day to incorporate into your own sentences today!
Example: Meeting a Person’s Fiance
First, study the below conversation between two people. Then, see if you can answer the follow-up questions!
Rebecca: Hi, Tom! Meet my fiance, Matt. We’re going to be getting married this summer.
Matt: Hi, Tom.
Tom: Nice to meet you, Matt! Pleased to meet you. This is my husband, Jude.
Jude: Hi, everyone! So nice to meet all of you!
Follow-Up Questions
Question #1: Is Rebecca engaged or married?
Answer #1: Rebecca is engaged.
Question #2: Who is Rebecca engaged to?
Answer #2: Rebecca is engaged to Matt.
Question #1: Is Tom engaged or married?
Answer #1: Tom is married.
Question #2: Who is Tom married to?
Answer #2: Tom is married to Jude.
As shown above, the word fiance refers to someone engaged to someone else when that person is a man. If Rebecca was engaged to a woman, she would have used the word fiancee.
What Are Translations of Fiance?
Outside of the American English language, people worldwide use different words to refer to their betrothed.
If you are trying to refer to your own fiance or someone else’s fiance in another language, you can reference this list of translations from Nice Translator. Likewise, if you are going to a wedding or an engagement party in another country, this list of translations will prove useful!
- Spanish: prometido/prometida
- Dutch: verloofde
- Danish: forlovede
- Turkish: nişanlı
- Norwegian: forlovede
- Bengali: বাগদত্তয়িতা
- Japanese: 婚約者
- Amharic: እሳቶች
- Hindi: मंगेतर
- Filipino: kasintahan
- Greek: αρραβωνιαστικός
- Italian: fidanzato
- Bulgarian: годеник
- Thai: คู่หมั้น
- Slovak: snúbenec
- Portuguese (Portugal): noiva
- Croatian: zaručnik
- Hungarian: vőlegény
- Chinese (PRC): 未婚夫
- Ukrainian: наречений
- Basque: fisiar
- Malay: tunang
- Latvian: līgavainis
- Welsh: fiance
- Indonesian: tunangan
- Czech: snoubenec
- Catalan: nuvam
- Swahili: mwanamke
- Kannada: ನಿಶ್ಚಿತ ವರ
- Tamil: வையுங்கள்
- Korean: 약혼자
- Gujarati: મંગળ
- Russian: жених
- Arabic: خطيب
- French: fiancé
- Serbian: вереник
- Swedish: fästman
- Icelandic: unnusti
- Vietnamese: hôn thê
- Telugu: కాబోయే
- Marathi: वागदत्त पुरुष
- Chinese (Taiwan): 未婚夫
- Portuguese (Brazil): noiva/noivo
- Estonian: peigmees
- Finnish: sulhanen
- Hebrew: אָרוּס
- Malayalam: പ്രതിശ്രുതനം
- Polish: narzeczony
- Urdu: منگیتر
- German: Verlobter
What Are Synonyms of Fiance?
Numerous words can stand in place of the word fiance, according to Power Thesaurus. All of these words can refer to someone whom someone else is in love with and simply someone who is engaged to be married.
Some synonyms of fiance have different connotations or levels of formalness than others. Study this list of synonyms of fiance and see if you can determine which words are formal, casual, positive, and negative in connotation.
- apple of eye
- apple of my eye
- be someone’s one and only
- betrothed
- better half
- boyfriend
- bride-to-be
- bridegroom
- common-law husband
- common-law wife
- consort
- fiancee
- future husband
- future wife
- girlfriend
- groom
- groom-to-be
- hubby
- husband
- husband-to-be
- intended
- life partner
- love
- love bird
- love giver
- love of life
- lovebird
- main squeeze
- partner
- soulmate
What Are Antonyms of Fiance?
The opposite of someone who is engaged to be married is someone who was previously married. Take a look at all of the below ways to refer to a previously married person or someone who was previously betrothed to someone.
How many of these antonyms of fiance from Power Thesaurus do you already know? Try using one of them in a sentence today!
- divorcee
- ex
- ex-ante
- ex-boyfriend
- ex-girl
- ex-girlfriend
- ex-husband
- ex-lover
- ex-post
- ex-special
- ex-spouse
- ex-wife
- exes
- former
- old flame
- widow
Conclusion
The definition of fiance (fiˈɒnseɪ) is a man or a gender-neutral person who is engaged to be married. Fiance can also be spelled with an accent mark over the e, as fiancé. If you are going to refer to a woman who is engaged to be married, you can use the word fiancée or fiancee.
These words are pronounced the same way but are spelled differently, so be careful when using them!
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