Single person

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In legal definitions for relationships, a single person is one who is not married or not in a romantic relationship. Single people may engage in dating to find a partner or spouse. Not all single people actively seek out a relationship, however, as some are content to wait for the 'right' person to enter their lives, while others do not seek relations at all. Additionally, persons may be required to remain single (or chaste) for religious reasons such as priests, nuns, or monks in certain faiths.

According to the United States Bureau of the Census, the fastest-growing household type since the 1980s has been the single person. There has been a similar increase in single person households in Britain.^[1]

Loneliness can occur for some people who look for but cannot find anyone they might wish to date, especially for those suffering the loss of companionship following divorce or bereavement. Some single people, however, regard and appreciate solitude as an opportunity.

There is a legal distinction between a single person and an unmarried person. Generally, an unmarried person may have been married and now be widowed or divorced. In some cases, mortgage papers have had to be redrawn because the buyer was mistakenly described as "unmarried" rather than "single."^{[citation needed]} (This left open the possibility that a mysterious ex-spouse might claim a part interest in the house being purchased.)

[edit] Terminology

Single men are often referred to as bachelors—while single women generally are named bachelorettes in festive contexts in American English. Elderly single women are sometimes referred to as spinsters. Catherinette was a traditional French label for girls of twenty-five years old who were still unmarried by the Feast of Saint Catherine.

[edit] References

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