Singlewoman, not always a spinster. Ditto for singleman and bachelor.

[coombs]

One ancestor of mine wed her first husband, and he died just months later. She remarried under her previously married name in the same parish but said she was a singlewoman, the witnesses confirmed though that it was the right marriage, plus the name of the groom and the bride's first name. Also the first marriage when she signed her first name "Elizabeth" the signatures matched to her 2nd marriage.

Also her children's baptisms gave her maiden name, in the 1810s, in a rare occurrence where a parish gave mmn's for all couples "Jones, late Smith" for example. And that tied in with Elizabeth's first marriage when she wed under her maiden name.

So you cannot always assume a singleman and singleowman had not been married before. This may explain why you may not find a baptism for the bride, if she was actually a widow and using her previous married name, but said she was a singlewoman when she remarried.

For instance, an example is, a Sarah Bloggs wed James Hamilton in 1800, James died in 1803, and Sarah remarried as Sarah Hamilton in 1805 but said she was a singlwoman. Yet any researcher would assume her birth name was Hamilton and be unaware she had been married before.

[Marmalady]

Yes, I have an ancestor marrying as a "single man" in the 1780s in the same church where his first wife and baby daughter were buried 6 years earlier.

[crisane]

Do 'singlewoman" and singleman" tehnically mean that the person concerned is not married at the present time whereas "spinster" and "bachelor" indicate the person has never been married?

[Kiltpin]

Do 'singlewoman" and singleman" tehnically mean that the person concerned is not married at the present time whereas "spinster" and "bachelor" indicate the person has never been married?

 

I agree. "Singlewoman" and "singleman" indicate whether a person is eligible for marriage or not. Widow and widower indicate that a person was once married. 

Mr Jones dies, leaving Mrs Jones to grieve. She is then known as the widow Jones. It matters not how many times she re-marries, she will always be the widow of Mr Jones. We can't change history. But the moment he dies, she becomes a singlewoman. 

Regards 

Chas

[Jebber]

Do 'singlewoman" and singleman" tehnically mean that the person concerned is not married at the present time whereas "spinster" and "bachelor" indicate the person has never been married?

You can’t take anything at face value on certificates, people don’t always tell the truth, you always need further verification, preferably  at leat two other items of proof.

I have a man who married twice as a bachelor, the second time while still married to wife number one.

Fictitious fathers named on birth and marriage certificates. Not to mention false  names on the same, the list is endless.

[BumbleB]

Not quite the same but still a lie.  Couple obtain a divorce in 1873.  Ex-wife remarries the same year, having reverted to her maiden name, as a "Divorced woman".  Ex-husband also remarries in 1873 as a "Widower" AND he is a Po9liceman. 

[coombs]

Do 'singlewoman" and singleman" tehnically mean that the person concerned is not married at the present time whereas "spinster" and "bachelor" indicate the person has never been married?

You can’t take anything at face value on certificates, people don’t always tell the truth, you always need further verification, preferably  at leat two other items of proof.

I have a man who married twice as a bachelor, the second time while still married to wife number one.

Fictitious fathers named on birth and marriage certificates. Not to mention false  names on the same, the list is endless.

Very much so, always check other sources, as the late Guy Etchells said, at least 3 other items of proof.

[Melbell]

The use of "Single" instead of "Bachelor" or "Spinster" might be more acceptable these (days in regards to marriage)....but it begs the question a little, because a person who is 'in a relationship' might not be regarded as "Single".   
 
Melbell

[coombs]

Spinster can also mean the occupation spinner of wool. But in a marriage register it should mean a woman who has never been married, but as said even then she may have still been a widow, or lied about her marital status, or the vicar made a mistake.