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A person's marital status indicates whether the person is married. Questions about marital status appear on many polls and forms, including censuses and credit card applications.

In the simplest sense, the only possible answers are "single" or "married". However, other options are often included, such as "divorced", "widowed", and "unmarried partners". While anyone who is not married is technically "single" in legal terms, it is often seen as desirable to include these other items. Some unmarried people do not identify as "single" for a variety of reasons, and may be reluctant to describe themselves that way. In some cases, knowing that people are divorced, widowed, or in a relationship is more useful than simply knowing that they are unmarried.

Family status is the combination of marital status with number of children.

Marital status studied in combination with other factors reveals a marriage gap.

[edit] See also

• Vital record
• Visual markers of marital status