Adjectives to Describe a Couple: Love, Match, Trouble and More

Good adjectives to describe a couple say something about the two of them together: how close they are (inseparable, devoted, affectionate), how well they fit (well-matched, complementary, easygoing), how long they have lasted (long-married, steadfast, solid) and, when things go wrong, what the trouble looks like (strained, volatile, estranged). Pick the one that matches something a reader could actually see the couple do.

Below, the words are grouped by what they describe, each with a sentence that uses it about a couple. There are words for a new couple, for a wedding card or toast, a few that are easy to misuse, and a short practice set. For one partner rather than the pair, see adjectives for a partner; for the relationship itself, see adjectives for relationships.

Quick picker

Words for a loving couple

• devoted – “After forty years they are still a devoted couple who walk to the market hand in hand.”
• affectionate (shows love openly) – “They are an affectionate couple, always touching an arm or a shoulder as they talk.”
• loving – “The children grew up in a loving home with a loving couple at its centre.”
• adoring – “The adoring couple could not stop smiling at each other during the toasts.”
• tender – “It was a tender moment between a couple who had nearly lost each other.”
• romantic – “They are a romantic couple who still leave notes in each other’s coat pockets.”
• passionate (strong feeling; can include strong arguments) – “They were a passionate couple: loud in love and loud in a fight.”
• smitten / besotted / lovestruck (newly and completely in love; a little playful) – “The besotted pair missed their bus twice that week.”
• head over heels (idiom, after the verb) – “Anyone could see the two of them were head over heels.”

Close and inseparable

• inseparable – “Since college they have been inseparable; you never see one without the other.”
• close – “They are a close couple who still tell each other everything.”
• close-knit – usually for a family or group, but fine for a couple who shut out the world: “a close-knit couple with few friends outside each other.”
• intimate – “an intimate dinner for the two of them.” (About a couple, intimate often suggests a sexual relationship, so use it with care.)
• in sync – “They are so in sync that they finish each other’s shopping lists.”
• attached (after the verb) – “They became deeply attached during the long winter apart.”

A good match

• well-matched – “They are a well-matched couple: both early risers, both terrible at golf.”
• compatible – “On paper they looked compatible, and in practice they were.”
• complementary (different in ways that fit) – “Hers is the big picture, his is the detail: a complementary couple in business and at home.”
• perfectly suited – “Friends always said they were perfectly suited.”
• like-minded – “a like-minded couple who share the same politics and the same taste in films.”
• unlikely (they do not seem to fit, yet it works) – “A punk drummer and a tax lawyer made an unlikely couple, and a very happy one.”
• odd – “the odd couple of the office: one tidy, one chaotic.” (Neutral to fond; it echoes Neil Simon’s play The Odd Couple.)

A strong team

• supportive – “They are a supportive couple; each one turned up to every exam and every gig.”
• united – “The couple presented a united front when the neighbours complained.”
• loyal – “a loyal couple who never talk about each other behind each other’s backs.”
• respectful – “Even when they disagree, they are a respectful couple.”
• considerate – “a considerate couple who always check before making plans for the other.”
• easygoing – “They are an easygoing couple who rarely argue about money or chores.”
• harmonious (formal) – “a harmonious marriage built on small daily kindnesses.”
• equal – “They have an equal partnership: both cook, both earn, both decide.”

A couple who have lasted

• long-married – “The long-married couple renewed their vows on their fiftieth anniversary.”
• long-term – “They are a long-term couple but have never wanted to marry.”
• steadfast – “Through two job losses and an illness, they stayed steadfast.”
• enduring – “Theirs is an enduring marriage, and it was not always an easy one.”
• solid / rock-solid – “Their marriage looked rock-solid from the outside, and it was.”
• stable – “They gave the children a stable home and a stable couple to watch.”
• resilient – “a resilient couple who came back from a separation stronger.”
• committed – “Both say they are a committed couple first and a busy one second.”
• faithful – “a faithful couple who have never given each other reason to worry.”
• golden – used for a fiftieth wedding anniversary: “the golden couple of the day.” It can also mean admired and successful (next section).

A new couple

• newlywed – “The newlywed couple moved into a one-room flat.”
• newly engaged – “The newly engaged couple announced it at Sunday lunch.”
• budding (the relationship is starting to grow) – “a budding romance between two of the volunteers.”
• fledgling (just starting and a little unsure) – “Their fledgling relationship survived its first holiday together.”
• young – usually about age: “a young couple with a baby on the way.”
• giddy – “They were giddy and new and talked about nothing else.”
• hopeful – “a hopeful couple looking at their first house.”

How others see them

• warm – “a warm couple whose door is always open.”
• sociable / outgoing – “a sociable couple who know everyone on the street.”
• fun-loving – “a fun-loving couple who hosted the best parties.”
• lively – “a lively couple, still dancing at midnight.”
• private – “a private couple who never post about each other online.”
• glamorous – “the glamorous couple on the cover of the magazine.”
• power couple (noun phrase: two successful people) – “a power couple who run a law firm and a hospital trust.”
• much-loved / beloved – “the much-loved couple who ran the village shop for thirty years.”
• golden (the couple everyone admires) – “In school they were the golden couple.”

A couple in trouble

These words describe a relationship that is struggling. Use them about characters or situations; about real people you know, keep it kind or keep it private.

• strained – “Their marriage became strained after the move.”
• rocky – “They went through a rocky patch in their thirties.”
• volatile (sudden shifts, fierce rows) – “a volatile couple who could go from laughter to slammed doors in a minute.”
• turbulent / tempestuous – “a tempestuous couple, often apart and never for long.”
• bickering – “a bickering couple who argue about the satnav on every trip.”
• mismatched / ill-matched – “an ill-matched couple: she loved the city and he hated it.”
• incompatible – “They realised they were incompatible about children.”
• distant – “They had grown distant, sharing a house but not a life.”
• estranged (living apart or no longer in contact, still married) – “his estranged wife” / “the estranged couple met in court.”
• on-again, off-again – “an on-again, off-again couple who broke up four times.”
• codependent (each relies on the other in an unhealthy way) – “a codependent couple who could not make a single decision alone.”
• toxic – “a toxic relationship” is common; “a toxic couple” is informal and judgemental.

For a wedding card, toast or anniversary

Cards and toasts need warm, simple words. A couple of specific details do more than a string of adjectives.

• “To a wonderful couple: may your life together be as happy as today.”
• “You two are the most generous, welcoming couple we know.”
• “Fifty years and still inseparable. Happy golden anniversary.”
• “Here’s to a couple who are kind to each other on ordinary days, not only on the big ones.”
• “From the first dinner, we could see you were made for each other.”

More ideas: adjectives for a wedding and adjectives for love.

Three words to describe you as a couple

This comes up on dating apps, in couples’ games and at engagement parties. Pick three words that each cover a different side of you, and add an example if you have room.

• Adventurous, silly, loyal – “We’ll try any food once, we laugh at the same terrible jokes, and we always have each other’s back.”
• Calm, curious, homely – “We like museums, long walks and a quiet night in.”
• Competitive, chaotic, close – “Board games end in arguments and we still play every week.”

Avoid three words that mean the same thing (“loving, caring, affectionate”); they tell the reader only one fact.

Words that are easy to misuse

Grammar notes

• Before the noun or after the verb. “A devoted couple” and “The couple are devoted” are both right. A few words work only after the verb: “They are head over heels / in sync.”
• Couple is or couple are? British English often treats a couple as two people: “The couple are moving to Leeds.” American English usually prefers the singular for the unit (“The couple is moving”) but switches to plural when they act separately (“The couple were arguing”). When a pronoun follows, the plural usually reads more naturally: “The couple are happy with their new house” sounds better to most ears than “The couple is happy with its new house”.
• Hyphens. Hyphenate a compound adjective before the noun: “a well-matched couple”, “a long-married couple”. After the verb it is usually open: “They are well matched.” (Dictionaries still hyphenate some compounds in both places, such as fun-loving and close-knit.)
• Commas between adjectives. Use a comma between two adjectives that each describe the couple on their own: “a warm, generous couple.” No comma when the first word describes the whole phrase: “a happy young couple.” See commas between adjectives.
• One partner or both? Smitten, adoring and possessive often describe one person. “He is smitten with her” is about him; “they are smitten” is about both.

A short model description

“Ruth and Dev are an unlikely couple. She plans holidays a year ahead; he packs on the morning of the flight. Somehow they are perfectly suited: she gets them to the airport, and he gets them talking to strangers once they land. After twenty years they are still affectionate in public, still bickering over the map, and still the first people their friends call in a crisis.”

Notice that each adjective (unlikely, perfectly suited, affectionate, bickering) is backed by something they do. That is what makes the description believable.

Practice

Choose the best word for each sentence.

1. They have been married for fifty-two years. They are a ______ couple. (newlywed / long-married)
2. She is tidy and he is messy, yet it works. They are an ______ couple. (unlikely / estranged)
3. They live apart and only speak through lawyers. They are ______. (inseparable / estranged)
4. They want to say they are honest with each other. “We are ______.” (an open couple / open with each other)
5. They go from laughing to shouting in a minute. They are ______. (volatile / easygoing)
6. Write the hyphen correctly: “They are a well matched couple.”
7. Both are successful leaders in their fields. They are a ______. (power couple / green couple)
8. Which is the better toast? (a) “To a loving, caring, affectionate couple.” (b) “To a couple who still dance in the kitchen.”

Answers: 1 long-married; 2 unlikely; 3 estranged; 4 open with each other (an “open couple” agree to see other people); 5 volatile; 6 “a well-matched couple”; 7 power couple; 8 (b) – one true detail says more than three similar adjectives.

Quick answers

What is a word for a couple who are always together?

Inseparable is the usual word. Informally, “joined at the hip”.

What is a word for a perfect couple?

Well-matched, made for each other or perfectly suited. “A match made in heaven” is the idiom.

What is a word for a couple who have been together a long time?

Long-married (if married), long-term, or steadfast and enduring for the quality of the relationship.

What do you call a couple who are both successful?

A power couple.

What are cute words for a couple?

Adorable, sweet, lovestruck, smitten, lovey-dovey (informal, sometimes teasing).

For words about one person in the relationship, see adjectives for a husband and adjectives for a wife.

Checked against Merriam-Webster, the Chicago Manual of Style and the AP Stylebook. Spotted an error? Tell us — see our editorial policy.