Couple-beggar
noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 One who, for a fee, performs an unauthorised wedding service, especially for poor people (originally beggars). historical
"Yet you'd have no license, but be married by beggarly bans ! [...] Sure it's wonderful you don't seek out a couple-beggar, and get married like the heathens in the time of Nebecudnazar !"
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
More examples"Yet you'd have no license, but be married by beggarly bans ! [...] Sure it's wonderful you don't seek out a couple-beggar, and get married like the heathens in the time of Nebecudnazar !"
Etymology
Originally a verb-noun compound, "one who couples beggars"; later extended to cases where the spouses were not destitute.
More for "couple-beggar"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.