(From a foreign speaker : ) I'm lucky enough to live with the man I love, but we're not married, nor having any "official" marital life. How should I refer to him ? He's a divorced man and will never be a "husband" again, and I don't feel like using the word "boyfriend" since both of us are over 50 ! The American "partner" sounds a bit too "raw" to me, and the Canadian "chum" doesn't befit the man either. I sometimes need to refer to him when talking to British as well as American guests.
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What do you mean by "partner" sounds a bit too "raw" to me? I think it's now the standard term in the UK on official documents in contexts where a [live-in] partner is treated on the same basis as a [married] spouse. If you want something a bit more "twee", you might like *significant other*, but you probably wouldn't want to use that on an official document. – FumbleFingers May 08 '15 at 15:21
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Partner is the standard term in the US, to the extent there is one -- this is a new thing, societally. And there's nothing "raw" about it. I enjoy being single and living with my partner. I've been married and had a wife once; my partner is not my wife, and we both like it that way, and she uses partner just like I do. – John Lawler May 08 '15 at 15:27
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Please let us know which term you found most appropriate. I find calling my 57-year-old man, a boyfriend, slightly awkward too :) But the term partner, I feel, is perfect if you are living together. – Mari-Lou A May 08 '15 at 16:56
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also related: Is there a more concise term for a long-term girlfriend/boyfriend than “significant other”? and What is a synonym for “girlfriend”? – Mari-Lou A May 08 '15 at 16:59