New2grammar  +  540067 Fri, 11 Jul 08 06:47 PM She was married away/off by her family at 10 to a man three times her age. Which is correct? Thanks. New2grammar Joined on Tue, Nov 21 2006 Veteran Member 7,676 Who wants to go sailing around the world with me?

	optilang  +  540068 Fri, 11 Jul 08 06:49 PM New2grammar “She was married away/off by her family at 10 to a man three times her age. Which is correct? Thanks. ” Sounds a strange sentence to me. optilang Joined on Tue, May 13 2008 Poland Senior Member 2,522 OptiNative British English Speaker Wherever I may roam, I'm still a Londoner.

	optilang  +  540075 Fri, 11 Jul 08 06:58 PM New2grammar “Why? ” I would expect a priest/minister/reverend to perform the marriage. To me, your version sounds like she had no say in the matter. Married off by her family - sounds like an arranged marriage - am I right? optilang Grammar, Marriage

	Grammar Geek  +  540078 Fri, 11 Jul 08 07:03 PM "Marry away" simply sounds unnatural. "Marry off" is the phrase. Grammar Geek Joined on Tue, Jan 10 2006 Veteran Member 19,683 Barbara, who answers in American English. My housekeeping skills attest to the truth of the second law of thermodynamics: Left to themselves, things get more and more random!

	optilang  +  540079 Fri, 11 Jul 08 07:05 PM New2grammar “Yes. She was forced to marry at a young age. By the way, what does marry away sound to you? ” So marry off is fine. I don't like marry away - it doesn't sound right to me and I've never heard it used. PS She was married away/off by her family at 10 to a man three times her age.   I completely misunderstood - I thought she got married at 10 (in the morning) - not when she was 10 years old. - Now I am going for a lot of beer. optilang Grammar