A committed relationship is an interpersonal relationship

Interpersonal relationship

An interpersonal relationship is an association between two or more people that may range from fleeting to enduring. This association may be based on limerence, love, solidarity, regular business interactions, or some other type of social commitment. Interpersonal relationships are formed in the...

 based upon a mutually agreed-upon commitment to one another involving exclusivity, honesty, openness, or some other agreed-upon behavior. Forms of committed relationships are: close friendship

Friendship

Friendship is a form of interpersonal relationship generally considered to be closer than association, although there is a range of degrees of intimacy in both friendships and associations. Friendship and association are often thought of as spanning across the same continuum...

, courtship

Courtship

Courtship is the period in a couple's relationship which precedes their engagement and marriage, or establishment of an agreed relationship of a more enduring kind. In courtship, a couple get to know each other and decide if there will be an engagement or other such agreement...

, long-term relationships (LTR), engagement

Engagement

An engagement or betrothal is a promise to marry, and also the period of time between proposal and marriage which may be lengthy or trivial. During this period, a couple is said to be betrothed, affianced, engaged to be married, or simply engaged...

, marriage

Marriage

Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

, and civil union

Civil union

A civil union, also referred to as a civil partnership, is a legally recognized form of partnership similar to marriage. Beginning with Denmark in 1989, civil unions under one name or another have been established by law in many developed countries in order to provide same-sex couples rights,...

s. The term is most commonly used with informal relationships, such as "going steady," but may encompass any relationship where an expressed commitment is involved.

Terms related to committed relationship include:

• monogamy
  Monogamy
  Monogamy /Gr. μονός+γάμος - one+marriage/ a form of marriage in which an individual has only one spouse at any one time. In current usage monogamy often refers to having one sexual partner irrespective of marriage or reproduction...
  
  : having a single long-term sexual partner
• marriage
  Marriage
  Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
  
  : a socially binding commitment to a partner
• sexual infidelity: having a sexual relationship outside of a relationship that includes a commitment to have no other sexual partners
• sexual fidelity: not having other sexual partners other than one's committed partner, even temporarily
• serial monogamy: having a series of monogamous relationships, one after the other
• polygamy
  Polygamy
  Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
  
  : having multiple long-term sexual partners
• polyandry
  Polyandry
  Polyandry refers to a form of marriage in which a woman has two or more husbands at the same time. The form of polyandry in which a woman is married to two or more brothers is known as "fraternal polyandry", and it is believed by many anthropologists to be the most frequently encountered...
  
  : having multiple long-term male sexual partners
• polygyny
  Polygyny
  Polygyny is a form of marriage in which a man has two or more wives at the same time. In countries where the practice is illegal, the man is referred to as a bigamist or a polygamist...
  
  : having multiple long-term female sexual partners
• polyamory
  Polyamory
  Polyamory is the practice, desire, or acceptance of having more than one intimate relationship at a time with the knowledge and consent of everyone involved....
  
  : encompasses a wide range of relationships, including those above: polyamorous relationships may include both committed and casual relationships
• relationship anarchy: having relationships that do not need to be guided by any predetermined rules or norms, but rather can be developed as an agreement between those involved.
• sexual promiscuity: having casual sexual partners at will (compare with chastity
  Chastity
  Chastity refers to the sexual behavior of a man or woman acceptable to the moral standards and guidelines of a culture, civilization, or religion....
  
  )

External links

• The Stages of Committed Relationships