Noun

Singular bachelor

Plural bachelors

bachelor (plural bachelors)

1. An unmarried man.
2. (Canadian) An apartment consisting mainly of one large room which is the living, dining, and bedroom combined. A bachelor apartment.

Derived terms

• bachelordom
• bachelorette (North America)
• bachelorhood
• Bachelor of Arts
• Bachelor of Science
• bachelor pad
• bachelor party
• bachelorship
• bachelor's button
• bachelor's degree

A bachelor is a man above the age of majority who has never been married (see single). The term's origin in this sense dates from 1385, Middle English.

The term is sometimes restricted to men who do not have and are not actively seeking a spouse or other personal partner. For example, men who are in a committed relationship with a personal partner (female or male) to whom they are not married are no longer generally considered "bachelors," but neither are they considered married. Thus, a broad grey, unnamed status has emerged between the concepts of "bachelor" and "married man."

Research done by sociologists Richard Pitt and Elizabeth Borland sharpens the definition of bachelor to mean "men who live independently, outside of their parents' home and other institutional settings, who are neither married nor cohabitating" for just this reason. They discovered that these bachelors were more liberal in their attitudes towards women's roles in society; this was not the case for those men who were only "unmarried".

During the Victorian Era, the term "confirmed bachelor" was used for showing a man's unmarried status, but today is often used as a euphemism for a gay man in the United States and the United Kingdom. In spite of the wider acceptance of gay people and same-sex relationships in recent years there are only little changes in this historic usage. Meanwhile, the term "confirmed bachelor" can also refer to heterosexual men who show no interest in marriage or classes of committed relationships.

The term "lifelong bachelor" has commonly replaced "confirmed bachelor", especially in reference to middle aged or older men who have never married and especially if they are not known to be in a relationship.

"Most eligible bachelor" is a generic term for a published listing of bachelors considered to be desirable marriage candidates. Usually "most eligible bachelor" lists are published on an annual basis and present listed men in a ranked order.