What do you call your ‘husband’ if you’re not married

[Seaseasea]

Been with DP 7 years, 2 DCs together... not married.

I cringe at saying ‘boyfriend’ and feel pretentious saying ‘partner’... what do you say?

I find myself pausing everytime I mention him to someone who doesn’t know his name

Please don’t use “other half” or “better half”.
Partner is better than that. Although I think sometimes people assume they are same sex if you don’t say boyfriend / girlfriend.

I say partner :)

Partner, but I do wonder if lots of people think I’m a lesbian.

Partner, but I do wonder if lots of people think I’m a lesbian.

Me too

Also sometimes "DDs dad" which makes it sound like we are separated

What’s pretentious about ‘partner’?

Partner.

My current lover

(not really, I say partner)

other half and better half make me majorly cringe

In the glorious Radio 4 comedy Cabin Pressure, Carolyn (who is furiously reluctant to acknowledge that she is dating Herc) rejects the words "boyfriend" and "partner" with disdain, finally settling on: "He's a...man I know." "OK", says Martin. "So why are you getting your Man You Know a stuffed sheep?"

Sometimes partner, sometimes boyfriend. Although that probably sounds a bit daft as we're both well into our 40s...

I too wonder if people think I’m a lesbian.

I don’t know why saying partner feels pretentious to me, it just does!

Although actually, a lot of people I know say ‘baby daddy’

Maybe I should just get married!

Sex buddy.
Nah, partner until we got married last year. But like others always wondered if people thought I was a lesbian...

Although actually, a lot of people I know say ‘baby daddy’

In a casual setting I also pause, panic that partner is too pretentious or someone could get the wrong end of the stick and think he's a woman, so I go for the equally awful word of 'fella'. Like some cockney wannabe 🙄🙄 it's embarrassing 😂

Before DH and I got married, my oh so prudish DM would refer to him as my "fancy man" or "live in lover". Or sometimes just "him".

We were together for nearly a decade before we married

We both usually used partner. Boyfriend sounds ridiculous after a while.

Who cares if people think you're gay!

With ExH, before we married we lived together for 7 years and I always referred to him as my partner is a reference was needed, this was 1991 to 1998.

Late-DH, together for 6 years before marriage, again partner where necessary, 2010 to 2016.

Current partner is only 8 months and not living together, generally referred to as "this bloke I'm seeing". He calls me his girlfriend.

Ew baby daddy sounds really..... Wrong.

I couldn't use lover. I lived in the west country and everyone calls everyone else "my lover" round there.

Him Indoors

I used to say partner (before we married) but I have had the question what kind of business my partner and me were in .

Him Indoors

My current lover

Oooh I love that one, stealing it if that's ok

I also feel inclined to mention I googled this before posting here and the options on the website were hillarious and included ‘swain, gigalo, sweetie pie’

I do use other half, sorry

I also say ‘him indoors’!

Sometimes I say ‘partner’