Take your partners...

Not on here you shouldn't Espee I was told bidie in was a derogatory term .Must be my working class roots showing...lol

I use the terms Other Half, Partner and Husband interchangeably.
In Scotland we use the term "bidie in" for unmarried couples who live together. I happily use that too.

no issues with husband or wife in a "gay marriage" I do have an issue with the term GAY MARRIAGE.Marriage is marriage whoever the couple are so when my neice talks about her wife I can only be delighted they finally managed to get married after 30 years together .
Talk of tiers of marriage is horrible,their union is as valid as everyone elses .We wont move forward to a normal life for the people who struggled to get that certificate if we try to make theirs second class .It certainly doesn't change the "status" of my marriage or of yoursSeptimia
Surely we're past the "gay" label ?They are just two people who want to spend their lives together

What if you are in your 30s and just met the person?

Partner has a more long term ring to it.
I think bf/gf is appropriate in this case
Many relationships are not exclusive till a certain period of time happens

If I were married to a woman, no issues at all calling her my wife. It is the proper name for a female who is married (if she agrees to be called that)

We're husband and wife, not hubby, hubster, hubs, wifey, the little woman, etc, all of which make me shudder!
Although we've been very happily married for almost forty years, we have unusual 'pet' names for each other...
He's 'Arfur' because he has a tendency to leave jobs 'arf done'.
I'm known as 'Anwen' as in 'Anwen' you've finished mowing the lawn you can start on the weeding, 'Anwen' that's done, the fence needs painting, 'Anwen' etc............

In other circumstances, I suppose 'Partner' is the best of a bad lot!

I find it odd when a man refers to his 'husband' or a woman to her 'wife'. I don't have a problem with same sex marriages and very much feel that people who commit their lives to each other should have all the protection in law that opposite sex partners have.

However... I do feel strongly that I have a husband, not a partner and that the use of 'husband' and 'wife' in same sex marriages takes away from my status.

We need a new term that doesn't include gender and is more inclusive - 'spouse' perhaps.

I think husband and wife is fine. Partner suits all relationships. Husband and wife for same sex relationships seems odd.

Yeah. Calling my bloke my boyfriend is yuck. As is lover (cringe). Partner's the best of a bad job.

I don’t know but when someone on the phone asks about my partner l immediately say: “my husband, you mean.”

Anything but ‘soulmate’ - I find that just cringey! ?