# What does "single" mean in the context of relationships?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-single-mean-in-the-context-of-relationships/704718>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [November 15, 2014, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-single-mean-in-the-context-of-relationships/704718 "2014-11-15T19:24:32Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 2

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\
**Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-single-mean-in-the-context-of-relationships/704718/21 "2014-11-17T14:22:50Z")

</div>

> [@LSLGuy](#):
>
> Occasioned by this thread [Would you consider this to be single or not? - In My Humble Opinion - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=740791)
> 
> I always thought “single” meant “not married at this moment”. Nothing more and nothing less. Ever.
> 
> In that thread a lot of Dopers contend that “single” means “not now in any relationship”. So if one dates the same person twice in a row, one is no longer “single”.

Depends on the context. If you’re answering a demographic survey, ‘single’ means you’re not married, and not in a relationship that you regard as the equivalent of being married.

But in most social contexts, ‘single’ = available.

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-single-mean-in-the-context-of-relationships/704718.md?page=1)