Is Married In Spanish? | Say It Right

In Spanish, “married” is usually casado or casada, picked to match the person you’re describing.

You see the word “married” everywhere: a dating profile, a visa form, a wedding invite, a family intro, a caption under an old photo. Spanish handles it cleanly, but it does ask you to make one choice every time: gender agreement. Get that right, then the rest is mostly about context—are you stating a status, describing a couple, or filling a box on a form?

This article gives you the translations you’ll actually use, plus the small grammar bits that keep your Spanish sounding natural.

What “Married” Means In Spanish

The most common Spanish equivalent of “married” is the adjective casado (masculine) or casada (feminine). The Real Academia Española defines casado, da as “a person who has entered into marriage,” which is the plain sense most learners want. RAE’s “casado, casada” dictionary entry is a solid reference when you want the formal definition.

Two quick patterns cover most situations:

• Status sentence:Estoy casado. / Estoy casada. (I’m married.)
• Description inside a noun phrase:una persona casada (a married person), una pareja casada (a married couple)

Spanish can translate “married” as a status (casado/a) or as the institution (matrimonio). The first is what you use for “I’m married” or “She’s married.” The second fits “marriage” as a noun: El matrimonio (the marriage), matrimonio igualitario (same-sex marriage), certificado de matrimonio (marriage certificate).

Is Married In Spanish? The Direct Translation

If you want the one-line answer, it’s this: “married” → casado (man) / casada (woman). That’s the translation you’ll see in reputable dictionaries. Cambridge Dictionary’s “married” entry shows casado/da as the standard match, with examples like una pareja casada.

From there, you plug it into the sentence you need. Here are the versions people trip over most:

• I’m married:Estoy casado. / Estoy casada.
• He’s married:Él está casado.
• She’s married:Ella está casada.
• We’re married:Estamos casados. / Estamos casadas. / Estamos casados (mixed group)

One more detail: Spanish often drops the subject pronoun. So you’ll hear Estoy casada more than Yo estoy casada unless someone is stressing “me.”

Picking The Right Form: Casado, Casada, Casados, Casadas

English uses one word for everyone. Spanish changes the ending so the adjective matches the person or group.

Gender And Number In Plain Terms

• casado: one man
• casada: one woman
• casados: two men, or a mixed group, or a couple spoken of as a unit
• casadas: group of women

If you’re talking about a couple together, están casados is common even when it’s a man and a woman, since Spanish defaults to the masculine plural for mixed groups. If you’re describing two women, están casadas is the natural choice.

When “Married” Acts Like A Noun

Spanish can use casado or casada as a noun meaning “a married person.” You’ll see it in lines like Los casados tienen hijos (Married people have kids). In formal writing, you may see personas casadas instead, since it reads clearer and keeps the focus on people.

Ser Vs Estar With Marital Status

Learners often hear two versions: es casado and está casado. In everyday Spanish, estar casado/a is the one you’ll meet most. FundéuRAE notes that ser casado is rarely used in general speech, while estar casado is the habitual pairing for civil status. FundéuRAE’s note on “ser/estar casado” explains the preference and gives examples.

So what should you do?

• Use estar casado/a when you’re stating status: Mi hermana está casada.
• Use ser with a noun phrase when you’re describing someone as a type of person: Es una mujer casada. (She’s a married woman.)

That second line matters. The verb changes, but the adjective stays the same. You’re not switching to ser casada on its own; you’re building a description around a noun.

Married In Spanish In Real Life

In conversation, you’ll hear casado/a alongside a few related words. Knowing them helps you read bios and understand what someone means without guessing.

• soltero/a: not married
• divorciado/a: divorced
• viudo/a: widowed
• separado/a: separated

How To Say “Married To” In Spanish

English uses “married to.” Spanish typically uses casado/a con.

• Está casada con Andrés.
• Estoy casado con mi mejor amiga.
• Llevan diez años casados.

On paper, you might see casado/a used with other prepositions in fixed legal phrasing, but con is the safe daily choice when the second part is a person.

Common Phrases You’ll Actually Use

Below is a quick set of “grab and go” translations. Use the column on the right to choose the best fit when English gives you one word and Spanish wants a full phrase.

English Intent	Natural Spanish	Notes
I’m married.	Estoy casado/a.	Most common status sentence.
Are you married?	¿Estás casado/a?	Add the ending that matches who you’re asking.
She’s married.	Ella está casada.	Pronoun is optional in many contexts.
They’re married (as a couple).	Ellos/ellas están casados/as.	Use casados for mixed groups.
Married couple	Una pareja casada	Works for any couple; context carries the rest.
Married with children	Casado/a y con hijos	Common in bios and profiles.
Newly married / newlyweds	Recién casado/a / recién casados	Use singular for one person, plural for a couple.
Married to (someone)	Casado/a con + name	Standard pairing for people.
Marriage certificate	Certificado de matrimonio	Use matrimonio as the noun for the institution.

Form Fields And Official Wording

Forms can feel stiff. Spanish still keeps the same core words, but you’ll see them in label style, not full sentences. Here are the ones that show up most:

• Estado civil: marital status
• Casado/a: married
• Soltero/a: single
• Divorciado/a: divorced
• Viudo/a: widowed
• Separado/a: separated
• Pareja de hecho / unión de hecho: domestic partnership (wording varies by country)

When a form asks for your status, you usually just select casado/a. If you’re writing it by hand, you can write casado or casada, no period needed unless the form uses abbreviations.

When Spanish Uses “De” With A Spouse’s Surname

You might run into the old-style pattern where someone is referred to as Apellido de Apellido, meaning “X, wife of Y.” It’s less common now, but it still appears in older documents and in some formal contexts. The RAE’s spelling guidance notes that the preposition de stays lowercase in that construction, like María Soto de Alvarado. RAE’s note on “de” in surnames covers the capitalization detail.

If you’re writing modern Spanish for a profile, an email signature, or a form, you usually don’t need this pattern at all. You can stick with your legal name as written on your ID.

Getting Nuance Right In Conversation

Some English sentences are vague about who is married, or what “married” is doing in the sentence. Spanish makes you pick a clearer structure. These tweaks make your lines sound like something a fluent speaker would say.

When English Uses “Married” As A Label

English can say “She’s married” and leave it there. Spanish can do the same: Está casada. If you’re introducing someone at a dinner, Spanish often adds a small link phrase:

• Está casada y tiene dos hijos.
• Está casado con Laura.
• Está casada desde 2018.

The last one is handy. “Since” becomes desde with a year, or desde hace with a time span: Está casado desde hace cinco años.

When English Means “Wedding” Or “Marriage”

English uses “married” in phrases like “married life” or “married name.” Spanish usually swaps to a noun phrase:

• married life:la vida de casado/a or la vida matrimonial
• married name: often phrased as apellido plus the legal context, since Spanish naming rules differ by country

If you’re translating a sentence about legal name changes, check the country’s rules before choosing words. Spanish is used across many legal systems, and the paperwork language changes with the jurisdiction.

Fast Checks Before You Hit Publish Or Submit A Form

If you’re writing Spanish for something that’s going to live online—like a profile, a bio, a caption, or a form—run these quick checks. They catch the errors that jump out.

Situation	Best Spanish Choice	What To Watch
Stating your status	Estoy casado/a.	Match the ending to the person speaking.
Stating someone else’s status	Está casado/a.	Drop the pronoun unless you need contrast.
Describing a type of person	Es una persona casada.	Use ser with the noun phrase.
Saying who they’re married to	Está casado/a con…	con is the usual preposition for people.
Talking about marriage as an institution	matrimonio	Use a noun, not casado.
Label on a form	Casado/a	Forms often omit verbs; that’s normal.
Talking about the couple as a unit	Están casados/as.	Mixed group defaults to casados.

Common Mistakes That Change The Meaning

Most errors with “married” in Spanish aren’t dramatic. They just sound off, or they shift what you’re claiming. Here are the ones worth catching.

Mixing Up Casar And Casarse

Casarse is “to get married.” Casar can mean “to marry someone” in the sense of performing the marriage, or “to match” in other contexts. If you want “We got married in 2020,” write Nos casamos en 2020. If you want “They got married last week,” write Se casaron la semana pasada.

Using The Wrong Ending In A Question

When you ask someone if they’re married, Spanish still wants agreement with the person you’re speaking to:

• Speaking to a man: ¿Estás casado?
• Speaking to a woman: ¿Estás casada?

If you don’t know, you can phrase it without the adjective: ¿Estás en pareja? or ¿Tienes pareja? Those lines shift the meaning toward “in a relationship,” so only use them when that’s what you mean.

Overusing “Ser Casado” As A Standalone

Some learners copy “ser + adjective” patterns and produce Soy casado. People will still understand you, but it’s not the everyday phrasing. Stick with Estoy casado/a for the simple status sentence, then use ser when you attach the adjective to a noun phrase, like Es un hombre casado.

Mini Templates You Can Copy

Here are ready-to-use templates you can drop into real writing. Swap names, dates, and numbers.

• Bio line:Casado/a y con dos hijos.
• Intro:Te presento a Marta. Está casada con Luis.
• Anniversary post:Llevamos 10 años casados.
• Work profile:Estado civil: casado/a.
• Wedding mention:Nos casamos en junio.

If you remember one thing, make it this: casado/a is the workhorse for “married,” and the ending follows the person. Once that clicks, the rest feels easy.