Kenneth G. Wilson (1923–). The Columbia Guide to Standard American English. 1993.
wed (v.)
is less frequently used today in its literal senses (except in headlines, thanks to its brevity) than marry, but it has the same two meanings, “to get married,” as in The next summer she wedded him at her parents’ home, and “to perform a marriage,” as in The ship’s captain wedded them. The past tense and past participle are either wedded or wed: My parents were wedded [wed] just fifty years ago. The participial adjective is a cliché in the phrase so often used jocularly, wedded bliss. Figuratively, wed is Standard in its high-frequency uses meaning “to combine, join, blend, or unite” and the like, as in This band’s music neatly weds jazz and gospel sounds.
