Quick answer: Marry, get married, be married
Learning goal: Distinguish the wedding event from marital status.
| Form | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| marry + person | Become someone’s husband or wife | She is going to marry Mike. |
| get married (to someone) | The wedding or change of status | They got married in London. |
| be married (to someone) | The state of being married | Anna is married to Juan. |
Marry / Get Married / Be Married ESL Lesson
Use marry + person or get married to + person for entering a marriage. Use be married for marital status. The partner follows to after get married and be married, but directly follows the active verb marry: Lee married Jo; Lee got married to Jo; Lee is married to Jo.
Both They married last spring and They got married last spring are possible without naming a partner. The first is more formal. The examples below compare the event and the state.
to marry (someone)– this is the general verb. It is the time when people come together as husband and wife. Do not say I married with someone. It is not correct. And do not say I married to someone. It is also incorrect.
Correct example: I married Sam 3 years ago.
to get married– this talks about the time two people got married. It makes us think of the wedding.
Correct example: I got married.
to get married to (someone)– We think of who was married in the wedding. Do not say I got married with someone. It is incorrect.
Correct example: I got married to Sam.
to get married in (someplace)– We think of where the wedding took place.
Correct Example: I got married in Hawaii.
to be married– This means a state of being. Are you married or are you single?
Correct Example: I am married.
to be married (to someone)– Also state of being. But who is married to you?
Correct Example: I am married to Sam.
Event or state? They got married in 2020 describes the event. They have been married for six years describes a state continuing to the present. Be married can also describe another time: They were married then; They will be married by next summer.
Using “Marry / Get Married / Be Married” Practice Quiz
Try the six questions below. Use a present form of be married for current status, a past form for a past wedding, and the base form after going to. Read the question as well as the blank, then compare your answers with the key. These are practice items, not a validated language-level test.
Check Your Understanding
Fill in the blanks with the correct form of marry.
Check your answers below in the answer key (but answer on your own first!)
1. Is Jim single or married? He ______________________.
2. Who did he marry? He ______________________ Susan.
3. Where did he get married? He ______________________ in London.
4. Is Anna single? No, she ______________________.
5. Who is Anna married to? She ______________________ Juan.
6. What is Jolene going to do this Saturday? She is going to ______________________ Mike.
Frequently Asked Questions Using “Marry / Get Married / Be Married”
Marry can take the partner directly: “Lee married Jo.” With get married, use to before the partner: “Lee got married to Jo.” Both can occur without a partner object: “They married” is more formal; “They got married” is common in conversation.
Yes. Marry can mean conducting a wedding ceremony. “The registrar married the couple” becomes “The couple were married by the registrar.” This passive describes the ceremony; it is different from using married as an adjective for marital status.
No. In “They are married,” married is normally an adjective describing their status. “They have been married for ten years” describes that continuing state. In “They were married by a registrar,” the words describe the ceremony in the passive voice. Context determines the use.
It often announces a future arrangement, as in “I am getting married next June.” It can also describe an event in progress, depending on context. The present continuous does not itself prove that wedding preparations are underway.
“Is he married?” asks about current status. “Is he getting married next month?” asks about a planned wedding. “Did he marry her?” asks whether the past event happened; it does not specifically ask why he made that decision.
Answer Key:
- is married
- married
- got married
- is married
- is married to
- marry
References: Cambridge: marry and divorce; married as an adjective; British Council: uses of be.
Check your understanding
Practice time: about 5 minutes. Choose an answer for every blank, then check your answers. A question earns one point when all its blanks are correct.
Show answer key and explanations
- is married. Is married describes his marital status.
- married. Married is followed directly by the person’s name here.
- got married. Got married describes the wedding event. Married also works as an intransitive past-tense verb in this sentence.
- is married. Is married describes her marital status.
- is married to. Use is married to before the partner’s name.
- marry. Use marry directly before the partner’s name.
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