Wedding Invitation Wording

After finding the perfect design, it's time to figure out what to say! Wedding invitation wording is usually determined by who is hosting (paying for) your wedding: you, the bride's parents or the groom's parents. Listed below are general guidelines for developing your wording. Make sure to download our Wording Inspiration PDF for more examples, and don't forget, Fiddleheads is always here to help you with suggestions, or to turn your "details" into content for you.

General Invitation Wording Etiquette

  • No periods at the end of a line
  • The first letter of each line is not capitalized unless it is a proper noun
  • Times are written out – half after five o'clock, seven o'clock
  • Dates are written out – Saturday, the fourteenth of October Two thousand nine
  • The first word of the year is capitalized – Two thousand nine
  • The use of "request the honor of your presence" is reserved for events held in a place of worship. For settings other than a place of worship, you should use "the pleasure of your company."
  • British spellings, such as honour, are still used for all types of formal weddings
  • Invitations are typically written without punctuation; line breaks take the place of commas, except to separate city and state, or to avoid confusion

Host Line

The traditional format has the bride's parents hosting and inviting the guests. With today's blended families and changing traditions many exceptions arise:

  • If the grooms parents are sharing expenses, both sets of parents act as hosts, with the bride's listed first: Mr. and Mrs. Richard Miller and Mr. and Mrs. Dan Donaldson request the honour of your presence…
  • You may want to mention the groom's parents, even if they’re not throwing the wedding: Mr. and Mrs. Adam Gleason request the honour of your presence at the marriage of their daughter Sherry to Mr. Peter Anderson; Son of Mr. and Mrs. Randall Anderson
  • Divorced parents should be listed on separate lines with the mother’s name first: Mrs. Lianne Renee Peterson and Mr. Alan Richard Nelson request the honour of your presence…
  • When a divorced parent and new stepparent are hosting the wedding both should be included: Mr. and Mrs. Tom Wilson request the honor of your presence at the marriage of Mrs. Wilson's daughter Amy Michelle Peredon
  • If both your parents are divorced and remarried and both couples are hosting the wedding: Mr. and Mrs.Daniel Hundt and Mr. and Mrs. Tom Wilson request the honor of your presence at the marriage of their daughter Amy Michelle
  • If you are paying for the wedding yourselves, it is traditional to invite the guests yourselves: Amy Peredon and David Hundt request the honour of your presence…
  • When either or both of the bride’s parents has remarried, the natural parents are listed since they usually give the bride away; depending on your family's situation, though, step parents can be included

Bride and Groom Line

Traditionally, a bride takes no title before her name. However, you may include titles for both the bride and groom; this is useful when one of you has an occupation that carries an official title, such as Dr. If you prefer to present yourselves as equals, it is best to leave titles off altogether. This is also appropriate if both sets of parents are serving as hosts.

Date and Time Line

Spelling out the day, date and year adds sophistication to your invitation, but you can also use numerals for the year. Similarly, while "half after six o'clock" is traditional, it may not be right for a less formal wedding. When stating the time, only the hour is necessary; there's no need to note A.M. or P.M. Where time of day may be unclear use "in the morning" or "in the evening."

Location Line

Make sure to use the proper name of your church. And spell out "Saint" or any other abbreviations (except R.S.V.P.). Most couples will enclose a direction card in the invitation to direct guests to the church and the wedding.

Inviting Children

If children are not listed as an addressee by name or by using "and family" on the inner envelope, they are not invited. While this is standard convention, not everyone is aware of this and some parents may still bring their children. While it is not recommended to state in the invitation that children are not invited, it can be done by adding "We regret that we are unable to provide facilities for babies and children."

>>> Click here to download a PDF file of invitation wording samples <<<