intermarriage
UK[ˌɪn.təˈmær.ɪdʒ]US[ˌɪn.t̬ɚˈmer.ɪdʒ]
n
Marriage between people from different social, racial, or religious groups.
n
Marriage between people who are closely related.
Morpheme Breakdown
inter
marriage
inter
between
marriage
the state of being married
Etymology
The word 'intermarriage' is a transparent compound formed within English. It combines the Latin-derived prefix 'inter-', meaning "between or among," with the noun 'marriage', which entered English via Old French from the Latin verb 'maritare' (to wed). The prefix 'inter-' itself descends from the Proto-Indo-European enter, meaning "between, among," which is also the source for Latin 'inter' and English words like 'interact' and 'interval'. Thus, the term's literal construction as "marriage between" directly and logically reflects its modern definitions, encompassing both marriage between different groups and, in a more specialized sense, marriage between closely related individuals (i.e., between members of the same family group).
Analysis
Structure: inter (between) + marriage (the state of being married)
- inter: Latin origin, meaning "between, among". A prefix indicating reciprocal or mutual action, or a position between things.
- marriage: Old French (mariage) origin, from Latin (maritare, "to wed"). The core noun form denoting the state or institution of being married.
Examples
Laws prohibiting intermarriage between different castes were finally abolished.
The study examined the effects of intermarriage on cultural assimilation.
In some royal families, intermarriage was common to preserve bloodlines.