Mrs.

Q: What is the plural of 'Mr.'?

The plural of Mr. is Messrs. There is a reason for this seemingly incongruous change : were one to simply add an s to the end of Mr. it would be indistinguishable from the honorific for a married woman, and so the plural is made by shortening the plural form of the French word for Misters ( Messieurs ).

Q: What is the plural of 'Mrs.'?

The plural of Mrs. is Mmes. , a shortening of the French plural Mesdames . English borrowed the French plural for this honorific after adopting Messrs. for the plural of Mr. . This was done because it would have been difficult to otherwise distinguish Mr. from Mrs. had we formed the plural by simply adding an s to it.

Q: How do you pluralize 'Ms.' and 'Miss'?

Miss (an unmarried woman or girl) is pluralized as Misses . Ms. (a woman for whom the marital status is either unknown or irrelevant) may be pluralized as either Mss. or Mses.

noun

ˈmi-səz

-səs,

especially Southern ˈmi-zəz,

-zəs,

or in rapid speech in sense 1 (ˌ)miz,

or before given names (ˌ)mis

variants US Mrs. or British Mrs

plural Mesdames mā-ˈdäm

-ˈdam

Synonyms of Mrs. next

—used as a conventional title of courtesy except when usage requires the substitution of a title of rank or an honorific or professional title before a married woman's surname

spoke to Mrs. Doe

—used before the name of a place (such as a country or city) or of a profession or activity (such as a sport) or before some epithet (such as clever) to form a title applied to a married woman viewed or recognized as representative of the thing indicated

Mrs. Golf

: wife

left with the Mrs.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the plural of Mr.?

The plural of Mr. is Messrs. There is a reason for this seemingly incongruous change: were one to simply add an s to the end of Mr. it would be indistinguishable from the honorific for a married woman, and so the plural is made by shortening the plural form of the French word for Misters (Messieurs).

What is the plural of Mrs.?

The plural of Mrs. is Mmes., a shortening of the French plural Mesdames. English borrowed the French plural for this honorific after adopting Messrs. for the plural of Mr.. This was done because it would have been difficult to otherwise distinguish Mr. from Mrs. had we formed the plural by simply adding an s to it.

How do you pluralize Ms. and Miss?

Miss (an unmarried woman or girl) is pluralized as Misses. Ms. (a woman for whom the marital status is either unknown or irrelevant) may be pluralized as either Mss. or Mses.

Examples of Mrs. in a Sentence

“How nice to see you! How's the Mrs.?” inquired the charming older gentleman

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Mark doesn't realize that this woman goes by the name Mrs. Selvig outside of Lumon and accidentally calls her Mrs. Cobel, tipping her off to the fact that his innie is wandering free in the outie world. —

Eliana Dockterman, TIME, 15 Jan. 2025 Donald Glover says Brad Pitt sidestepped giving him advice on Mr. & Mrs. Smith In September 2024, Spain's Interior Ministry announced that five online scammers had been arrested for defrauding two women out of $350,000 by impersonating Pitt. —

Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 15 Jan. 2025 On Thursday morning, Mrs. Obama’s spokesperson released a statement. —

Vivian Kwarm, New York Daily News, 15 Jan. 2025 Brangelina, who became an item after co-starring in the 2005 action-comedy Mr. & Mrs. Smith, settled their divorce Dec. 30, nearly eight years after Jolie filed for divorce. —

Kalia Richardson, Rolling Stone, 14 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for Mrs.

Word History

Etymology

Mrs. abbreviation of mistress; Mesdames from French, plural of Madame

First Known Use

circa 1574, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler

The first known use of Mrs. was circa 1574

See more words from the same year

Cite this Entry

Style

“Mrs..” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Mrs.. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.

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Kids Definition

Mrs.

noun

ˌmis-əz

-əs,

especially Southern ˌmiz-əz,

-əs,

or (ˌ)miz

plural Mesdames mā-ˈdäm

-ˈdam

—used as a title before a married woman's last name

—used to form a title for a woman who represents the thing indicated

Mrs. Clever

Mrs. Golf

Etymology

an abbreviation of mistress

Medical Definition

MRS

abbreviation

magnetic resonance spectroscopy

Last Updated: 18 Jan 2025 - Updated example sentences

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Mrs.

noun

Frequently Asked Questions

Synonyms

Examples of Mrs. in a Sentence

Word History

Dictionary Entries Near Mrs.

Cite this Entry

Kids Definition