1.
unmarried; single
The state of never having been married. Used on official forms and in formal contexts to indicate marital status.
彼はまだ未婚だ。
He is still unmarried.
未婚の母として子どもを育てている。
She is raising a child as an unmarried mother.
最近は生涯未婚のまま過ごす人が増えている。
Recently, more and more people are spending their entire lives unmarried.
A formal term used on official documents and in statistics. Distinct from 独身, which simply means single and can include divorced or widowed people.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 未婚の母 (unmarried mother)
- 未婚率 (unmarried rate)
- 生涯未婚 (lifelong single, never married)
USAGE NOTE:
未婚 specifically means "never married" and contrasts with 既婚 (married). For someone who was previously married, 離婚 (divorced) or 死別 (bereaved) would be used instead. On forms, the choices are typically 未婚 / 既婚.