They were cohabiting for three years before their marriage.是什么意思？

They were cohabiting for three years before their marriage.

他们同居了三年才结婚.

they

pron. 他/她/它们，人们，大家，政府，当局，她们；

例句
The storms had abated by the time they rounded Cape Horn.
他们绕过合恩角时，暴风雨已经减弱。

were

be的过去时复数和第二人称单数形式，有时代替 was,用于条件从句、动词 wish 之后等；

例句
Shops, houses, and vehicles were set ablaze.
店铺、房子和车辆全都陷于火海。

cohabiting

v. （未婚者）同居( cohabit的现在分词 )；

例句
Ann had been cohabiting with Jim for years before getting married.
安在结婚前曾和吉姆同居了好几年.

for

prep. 为，为了，倾向于，关于，当作；conj. 因为，由于；

例句
I've come looking for a bit of advice.
我特来讨教。

three

num. 三，三个，第三（章，页等）；n. 三岁，三个人[东西]，三，三个；adj. 三的，三个的；

例句
Outsiders who wed islanders are given only three years' right of abode at first.
岛外的人和岛民结婚之初只能获得三年的居住权。

years

n. 年( year的名词复数 )，年纪，一年的期间，某年级的学生；

例句
His wife was sentenced to seven years imprisonment for aiding and abetting him...
他的妻子作为他的从犯被判入狱7年。

before

prep. 在…之前，先于，优于，当着…的面，与其…；conj. 在…之前，在…以前，比…早些，与其…；adv. 先前，从前，在前，在前方；

例句
He pleaded guilty before a court martial to absenting himself without leave.
在军事法庭上他对自己擅离职守表示服罪。

their

pron. 他（她，它）们的，在提及性别不详的人时，用以代替 him 或 her；

例句
Their permissiveness toward their children reflects the wild abandon of their own lives.
他们对孩子的放任折射出他们自身生活的放浪形骸。

marriage

n. 结婚，婚姻生活，密切结合，合并；

例句
Rosie's idyllic world came to an abrupt end when her parents' marriage broke up...
父母婚姻的破裂使得罗茜田园诗般美好的世界陡然画上了句号。