A betrothal in the present tense is a mutual promise constituting marriage itself.

Explanation

At common law, *sponsalia de praesenti* — a present-tense exchange of vows ("I take thee") — constituted an actual marriage, as distinguished from *sponsalia de futuro* (a promise to marry in the future, i.e., an engagement). The mutual present consent of the parties, not the ceremony, made the marriage.

Where this applies

• Two people exchange present-tense vows — 'I take thee as my husband' — without a ceremony, and later dispute whether a valid marriage was created by those words alone.
• A couple privately declares to each other 'I marry you here and now' with no witnesses, and a court must decide whether those present-tense words constituted an actual marriage.
• A man and woman exchange solemn present-tense promises of marriage before their families, and a court holds that sponsalia de praesenti created a binding marriage, not merely an engagement.

See also

• 4.1.2 Not cohabitation but consent makes marriage.
• 6.2.1 The agreement gives the law to the contract.