Definition

1. Verb:
   • To live together and have a sexual relationship, typically without being legally married.
   • To share a residence and domestic life as a couple.

Examples

• Verb:
  • They decided to cohabit for a year before getting married.
  • The law recognizes the rights of couples who have cohabited for a long period.
  • Many people choose to cohabit as a step before or instead of marriage.

Advanced Usage

• Legal Context: In many jurisdictions, "cohabit" describes a domestic partnership that may confer certain legal rights after a specific duration, often referred to as a "common-law marriage."
  • The new legislation protects partners who have cohabited for more than five years.
• Sociological Context: The term is often used in studies of family structures and changing social norms.
  • The research paper examines trends among young adults who cohabit.

Variants and Related Words

• Cohabitation (n): The state or fact of living together as a couple.
  • Their cohabitation lasted for three years.
• Cohabitant (n): A person who cohabits with another.
  • Both cohabitants are listed on the lease.

Synonyms

• Live together: A more common, informal phrase with the same core meaning.
• Shack up (with someone): A very informal, sometimes derogatory idiom meaning to cohabit.

Related Phrases

• Common-law partner/spouse: A person considered a spouse due to a long-term cohabiting relationship, recognized by some laws.
  • She is his common-law spouse; they have cohabited for a decade.

Related Idioms

• To set up house (together): To begin living together in a shared home, often implying cohabitation.
  • After graduation, they decided to set up house together in the city.

Verb

1. share living quarters; usually said of people who are not married and live together as a couple