Wedding Invitation Wording for Every Family Situation (With Examples)

The 6 Lines Every Wedding Invitation Wording Needs

Every sample on this page uses placeholders in brackets, like [Full name], so you can swap in your own names. The order of the lines stays the same whatever your family looks like.

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Formal or Casual: Match the Wording to Your Wedding

Your wording should sound like your wedding. A black tie evening and a backyard barbecue need different lines, even if the facts are the same.

Formal invitations skip abbreviations, so Street, Saint and Doctor are written out. Numbers in the date and time are spelled out too, while house numbers can stay as numerals.

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Both Families Hosting

When both families are contributing, or you just want everyone included, there are two common ways to word it. The first is short, and the second names both sets of parents.

Bride's Parents Hosting (Traditional Wording)

This is the classic version, used when the bride's parents host. The bride is listed by first and middle name only, since the hosts' line already gives the family surname.

The "son of" line is optional, and many families like it because it includes the other side. If the groom's parents are hosting instead, swap the roles: they go on the hosts line, and "their son" replaces "their daughter".

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The Couple Hosting

Many couples now pay for most of the wedding themselves, so their own names lead. You can still thank family with a short opening line.

Want to include family without naming them? Open with "Together with their families" or "With joy, together with their parents", then follow the same lines.

Divorced or Remarried Parents

The rule that solves most divorced-parent wording: each household gets its own line, and there is no "and" between parents who aren't married to each other. List the parent the bride or groom lived with first, or whichever order keeps the peace.

When a stepparent is on the hosts line, write the couple's full names rather than "their daughter", since the hosts don't all share the relationship. If including everyone gets too long, "Together with their families" is a graceful fallback.

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Honoring a Late Parent

A parent who has passed away can't technically host, but they can be named in the couple's line. The usual way is "the late" before their name.

Another option is the couple-hosting wording with a line such as "daughter of [Living parent] and the late [Parent's name]" under one name. Some couples choose to honor the parent in the ceremony program instead; any of these is respectful.

Same-Sex Couples

Every format above works for same-sex couples. The only real question is whose name goes first, and the answer is whatever you prefer: alphabetical, the one that sounds better aloud, or the person whose family is hosting.

If one set of parents hosts, use "at the marriage of their son" or "their daughter" with the partner's name after "and" or "to". Keep the same pattern for both names on the response card and envelopes.

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Casual Wedding Invitation Wording

Casual wording drops titles and spelled-out dates and sounds more like you talking. It suits backyard, brewery and small restaurant weddings.

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Adults-Only Wedding Wording

The invitation itself doesn't say "no kids". Instead, the envelope shows exactly who is invited, and a details card or your wedding website explains it kindly.

On the RSVP card, a line like "We have reserved __ seats in your honor" makes the headcount clear. Fill in the number before mailing, and address the envelope to the adults only.

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Reception Lines: Dinner to Follow and More

The last line of the invitation tells guests what happens after the vows. If the reception is at a different place, put it on a separate reception card instead.

A dress code line, such as "Black tie optional" or "Cocktail attire", can sit at the bottom right of the invitation. Registry details belong on your wedding website, not on the invitation.

Invitation Wording Mistakes to Avoid

Proof your invitation for these

• The day of the week matches the date
• Every name is spelled the way that person spells it
• "Honour" and "favour" are spelled the same way everywhere if you use the British spelling
• Parents who aren't married to each other aren't joined by "and"
• No registry links or "no kids" lines on the invitation itself
• The RSVP date gives you time before your caterer's final count
• Someone outside the wedding has read it aloud before you print

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Next: Seating, Timeline and Vows

Once RSVPs come back, the guest list turns into a seating chart; our guide to how to make a wedding seating chart covers divorced parents there too. Set the invitation time from a finished wedding day timeline so the start time on the card is the real one.

And when you're ready for the words you'll say yourself, the wedding vow template shows word counts and read-aloud times.

Printing and postage add up fast. The 12 month wedding planning checklist shows when to order and mail invitations, and the hidden wedding costs guide covers extra postage for heavy or square envelopes.