縁結び・縁むすび|えんむすびenmusubi[3]nakadaka (mid-high)

1. nounmarriage; marriage tie; love knot
2. nounspiritual connection (to a person, object); spiritual tie; fated connection

• Synonym縁組えんぐみWrittenWritten/formal: forming a family tie through marriage or adoption, focusing on the tie being established; commonly 「養子縁組」.
• Synonym縁付きえんづきCasualColloquial but rare: a woman marrying into a husband's family; close in sense to 「嫁入り」.
• Related結婚けっこんNeutralNeutral and the most common everyday word: marriage itself, becoming husband and wife; it has none of the divine-matchmaking nuance of 「縁結び」.
• Related婚姻こんいんWrittenWritten/formal: marriage as a legal relationship between husband and wife, as in 「婚姻届」.
• Related成婚せいこんWrittenWritten/formal: a marriage being concluded or brought to completion; typical of matchmaking services and the imperial family.
• Related嫁入りよめいりCasualColloquial: a woman marrying into her husband's family; carries a traditional, family-centered flavor.
• RelatedマリッジNeutralNeutral loanword for marriage; used mostly in compounds such as 「マリッジリング」.
• Related縁付きえんづきCasualColloquial but rare: a woman marrying into a husband's family; close in sense to 「嫁入り」.
• Related輿入れこしいれWrittenWritten/formal: the bride entering her husband's home, or the bridal procession itself.
• Related縁定めえんさだめWrittenWritten/formal and rare: settling a betrothal, agreeing on a marriage; not the act of matchmaking or tying fated bonds.
• Antonym離縁りえんWrittenWritten/formal: severing the marital or adoptive tie; stands opposite 「縁結び」, which ties people together.

Use 「縁結び」 for matchmaking or tying a fated bond, as in 「縁結びの神」 and 「縁結び神社」. For marriage itself, say 「結婚」; in legal contexts, 「婚姻」; for adoption, 「縁組」. The rest are narrower: 「嫁入り」「縁付き」「輿入れ」 for a bride joining her husband's family, 「成婚」 for a marriage being concluded, 「縁定め」 for betrothal, 「マリッジ」 in compounds, and 「離縁」 for severing the tie.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 二人ふたりの人ひとが夫婦ふうふになること。また、そのつながり。
2. 運命うんめいによって人ひとや物ものとつながること。また、そのつながり。