Do People Refer to Roommates as Partners?

I am not in my twenties but this is something I heard from someone in his twenties so I thought id ask here. Im 37F so a bit out of touch with some of the terminology people in their twenties use.

So at work I have a junior who is probably in his twenties and is super into cooking. There was some random discussion and he referred to his roommate as a partner. Is that normal for referring to roommates and an interchangeable term or was that a slip indicating a romantic partner? The roommate is a guy.

Im not judgemental and not being nosy. Only trying to understand before I assume. Id never mention it to anyone.

Anyone in their twenties can confirm?