Last weekend the English Prince Harry got married to his American fiancée, Meghan Markle in the biggest royal wedding of the year. Lots of people were very excited to watch the event on television, and thousands of people from all over the world waited by the side of the road to watch as Harry and Meghan drove past in a horse-drawn carriage. Everybody went a little bit wedding-crazy, with all the newspapers and media outlets running stories about the dress and the wedding and the after party and one fish and chip shop even made battered wedding cake.
But how is your English wedding vocabulary? Do you know how to talk about a wedding in English? Here are some useful words we use to talk about weddings:
bride (n) – the woman getting married. Meghan was the bride.
groom (n) – the man getting married. Harry was the groom.
bridesmaids (n) – The close female friends/relatives of the bride. They are sometimes children, but not always. They help the bride on the wedding day. Charlotte was a bridesmaid.
best man (n) – The best friend or brother of the groom. He helps the groom on the wedding day and usually gives a funny speech at the wedding reception. William was Harry’s best man.
ceremony (n) – The part of the day when the bride and groom get married. It’s often in a church, but it could be in a town hall, or on the beach, for example.
wedding vows (n) – These are the promises that the bride and groom make to each other at the ceremony. There are special vows written by the church, but nowadays many people decide to write their own.
reception (n) – The party after the ceremony. There is a meal, and drinks, and speeches, traditionally by the father of the bride, the groom and the best man.
after party (n) – sometimes there is an after party after the reception. There is drinking and dancing. The bride and groom usually have the first dance to themselves before everyone else joins in. Apparently, Harry and Meghan danced to Whitney Houston.
wedding list (n) – In the UK, guests usually don’t give money to the bride and groom. Instead, the bride and groom make a list of things that they would like in their new house. Things like plates, glasses, kitchenware and furniture are common things on a wedding list. Guests look at the list and then buy something as a present for the bride and groom.
What are weddings like in your country? Do people have all these things at their wedding?