proposal of marriage
2
2.5
- noun
- /prəˈpoʊzəl əv ˈmɛrɪdʒ/
:
propuesta de matrimonio
- She immediately knew what it was: a proposal of marriage.
Examples
-
Two proposals of marriage in one evening?
-
My proposal of marriage... to your daughter Anne has been accepted, and I respectfully request permission to fix a date.
-
Last week alone, l had 11 proposals of marriage.
-
Had that truly been a proposal of marriage?
Fiction book (2000) -
Once a woman and her clan accepted a proposal of marriage, the man had to prove that he was a good provider.
Academic text (1990) -
I accepted Mr. Benn's proposal of marriage.
-
For Sonia comes a proposal of marriage from a good man, who knows her every failing.
Fiction book (1993) -
But she refused all proposals of marriage, declaring that she lived now for her son only and the memory of her departed saint.
-
He confided in Luke that he had plans to make a proposal of marriage to me.
Fiction book (1997) -
I want to accept your proposal of marriage... if it still stands.
Synonyms
44
2.9
Asking someone to marry you
40
7.8
A request to marry someone
13
2.2
To ask someone to become your husband or wife
1
3.0
To ask someone to become your husband or wife
How Formal
- Informal
65
6.1
2
2.5
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'an instance of asking someone to marry you' is directly and compositionally derived from 'proposal' (an act of asking) + 'of' + 'marriage' (the institution/act of marrying). This is a literal, cross-linguistically common construction (equivalent to 'marriage proposal'), so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Proposal of marriage comes from the clear image of someone making a formal offer: the proposal is the offer and the marriage is the joining of two lives, often shown by kneeling and giving a ring. So the phrase means 'to ask someone to marry you'.