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A secondary meaning of Old English ealu, the ancestor of Modern English ale, was “feast, banquet,” at which the drinking of ale was a prominent activity. There were a number of these feasts and banquets that survived into the 19th century, but the oldest and best-established was the bride-ale, or wedding feast, attested in Old English as brydealu. In Middle English the ale half of the word had lost its stress and was associated with the noun suffix –al (as in funeral) and the adjective suffix (as in parental). By the 18^th^ century, bridal was perceived primarily as an adjective, as it is today.
Examples of bridal in a Sentence
Erin Clack, Peoplemag, 1 July 2024
But the post-pandemic bridal wear landscape is remarkably different.
—Yola Mzizi, CNN, 21 June 2024
Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 3 July 2024
Eva Amurri continues to defend her taste in bridal wear.
—Michelle Lee, Peoplemag, 3 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for bridal 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bridal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near bridal
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“Bridal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bridal. Accessed 7 Jul. 2024.
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