Ms
nounnounnouncommon in dialogue
- United Kingdom//ˈmɪz//
- United Kingdom//məz//
- United States//ˈmɪz//
- United States//ˈmɪs//
- //ɛmz//
Title used before an adult woman's name or surname, especially when it is not desired or possible to indicate her marital status with Miss or Mrs.
noun
- 1
Title used before an adult woman's name or surname, especially when it is not desired or possible to indicate her marital status with Miss or Mrs.
Ms Jane Doe; Ms. Roe
‘[…] I don’t know how to thank you for this, Mrs Stevenson.’ ‘It’s Ms to my business associates and Anna to you,’ […]
Etymology
Found since the 1600s as an abbreviation of mistress (whence also Miss and Mrs), a title which initially did not indicate marital status. Suggestions that the term be revived began in 1901, and referenced the fact that dialects such as Southern US English already made no distinction between Miss and Mrs (/ˈmɪz/) in speech. With the founding of the magazine Ms. in 1971, the term quickly became widespread as an alternative to Miss and Mrs., which require knowing (and publicizing) the referent's marital status.
noun
- 1
Also a form of Mplural of M
Etymology
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
noun
- 1
Variant of mesylAbbreviation of mesyl.
Etymology
From a shortening of its name.
Forms
- plural
- Mss, Mses
Ms · Title used before an adult woman's name or surname, especially when it is not desired or possible to indicate her marital status with Miss or Mrs.
MS · M/S: Initialism of motor ship.MTV · A television channel that originally showed mostly music…mu · The 12th letter of the Modern Greek alphabet.