bridesman

B3R1I1D2E1S1M3A1N1

noun

A male friend or companion of the bridegroom, having various ceremonial duties at a wedding.

Scrabble 14

Meanings

nounbridesman (plural bridesmen)

plural bridesmen · alternative brideman · alternative bride's-man · alternative best maid

  1. A male friend or companion of the bridegroom, having various ceremonial duties at a wedding.

    According to him, on the following Thursday, the bridesmen, numbering “six, eight, even ten or more,” rode on horseback with four wagons to get the bride.

    2005, Susan Karant-Nunn, The Reformation of Ritual, page 26
    1 more example

    It was customary, in those days, for the bride's-man and maiden, and a few select friends, to visit the newly married couple after they had retired to rest […].

    1824, James Hogg, The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner, Oxford, published 2010, page 7
  2. A male bridesmaid; a man who attends a bride during her wedding ceremony, as part of the wedding party.

    She might be renting a tux, however, as she is willing to have a bridesman.

    2008 June 26, Katie Zezima, “Bride-to-Be Takes a Chance on eBay for a Bidding Bridesmaid”, in New York Times

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see

Origin

From bride + -s- + man, by alteration of earlier brideman; compare bridesmaid.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Finnish sulhaspoika, sulhaspoika
  • sulhaspoikamale friend or companion of the bridegroom
  • sulhaspoikamale bridesmaid
German Brautführer, Brautführer
  • Brautführermale friend or companion of the bridegroom
  • Brautführermale bridesmaid
Russian поджени́шник
  • поджени́шник (podženíšnik)male friend or companion of the bridegroom

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

bridesman. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bridesman

MLA

“bridesman.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bridesman. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bridesman,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bridesman.

Source: bridesman on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.