How to abbreviate mister in English. Mrs.

My ex-employee, a "real American" named Nancy, getting married in the late 80s, did not change her last name. All of her diplomas and visiting cards have her "maiden name" written on them. And in all official documents related to work (say, an invitation to a conference), the reference to it begins with "Ms.". But on private invitations, say, to a wedding-christening to friends and relatives, i.e. where they are invited together with her husband, as a couple, she is called "Mrs." plus the husband's last name. More precisely, they are there together and stand: "Mr. & Mrs" plus the husband's surname.

Well, it turns out that this double naming game is actually very common in the States. Nancy Gibbs, a Time Magazine columnist, recently wrote about this: Mrs., Ms. or Miss: Addressing Modern Women.

She says that both Miss and Mrs. come from the word Mistress, meaning the mistress of the house, not necessarily a wife, but in general a woman with some kind of power. Moreover, in the 18th and 19th centuries, the difference between these two abbreviations indicated only the age of the hostess. And only then Mrs. came to mean a married woman, Mr.'s wife, and Miss, therefore, unmarried.

The first use of the title Ms. recorded in history already in 1767 - on the tombstone of a certain woman. Perhaps this was a mistake or a deliberate way to reduce (to save space).

Officially the title of Ms. (pronounced "miz") was introduced in America as early as 1952. It was invented by employees of the National Association of Office Managers - so as not to rack their brains on how to properly address secretaries and not embarrass them and themselves in case of a mistake. The idea was to introduce a "married-neutral" address, to separate the respectful form of addressing a woman from the fact of her marriage.

I don't know how common this form was then. If there was, it really was only among office managers. But when the first feminist magazine was born in the States twenty years later, it was called "Ms." And in the editorial column they wrote that they were doing this in order to establish a new attitude towards a woman - as an individual, and not through her attitude towards a man.

The reaction in the society of that time, both to the women's movement in general, and to the magazine Ms. in particular, as usual, was mixed. The conservative majority was skeptical, to put it mildly. In particular, the New York Times newspaper published a note under the heading (translation as close as possible to the original) "The women's movement in provincial America is either a joke or a bore." And Gloria Steinem was represented by a rather paradoxical one: “Miss Steinem, editor of Ms.” magazine. And even now there is still confusion with these titles.

However, in contemporary America, the appeal of Ms. has long been quite generally accepted, common and even preferred in the official and working environment. The process of introducing a new word was gradual. In particular, the New York Times only gave up in 1986, and Ms. sent a bouquet of flowers to colleagues on this occasion :)

The author of the article writes that she herself does exactly the same as my Nancy from her last job: at work she is Ms. plus maiden name, and at home - Mrs. plus the husband's last name. And it happens that the husband is called Mr. plus her maiden name (and he is not offended :)). She believes that there is nothing wrong with such half-heartedness, and that this only gives more freedom of choice. Well, maybe...

Surely you have heard the address "Mrs" at least once. You may have come across the abbreviation "Mrs" in your letters. What is it and when is it appropriate to apply? How to communicate correctly in England and America? Let's talk about this in more detail. The information will be useful if you are going to visit Foggy Albion.

Conversion as a tribute to tradition

England is a country of traditions. The British treat their history and culture with care. This is a very conservative nation. Moreover, the rule extends to the culture of communication. In the 17th century, it was customary to separate the appeal to married and free girls. This rule is still relevant today, despite the fashion of equality of relations. The division into statuses is not typical for the Russian language. Surely you are familiar with the abbreviation "Mrs". What is it and when is it used?

Address as an expression of social status

English etiquette requires a girl or woman to emphasize her social position in dialogue or correspondence. We already know that "Mrs" is such an address to a woman. But is it always appropriate?

English has several options:

Pronunciation, transcription and obsolete meaning

Now it is clear what it is - "Mrs". The transcription of the word is as follows: .

Today "Mrs" is an address to a married woman. But earlier there was an obsolete word "Mistress". In modern English, it is practically not used anymore, it can be translated as "mistress", "mistress".

Modern meaning and usage

In modern English, the translation of "Mrs" is interpreted somewhat differently - no longer as "wife".

In writing, full appeals are not used, so the following abbreviations are accepted:

Dear Miss Braun - Dear Miss Brown;
Dear Mrs. Jonson - Dear Mrs. Jonson;
Dear Ms Willison - Dear Mrs. Willison.

As you can see, the number of letters is slightly different. "Ms" is a universal way of addressing both married and single girls.

What you need to consider before starting a dialogue with the interlocutor

Before you start a conversation with anyone, you must have certain information and consider the following points:

gender and age of the interlocutor - a more respectful treatment is expected to a person who is much older than you;
social status;
level of education;
level of communication and environment. Informal and business communication differ from each other. It is unlikely that a friendly form of dialogue is suitable for business negotiations.

How to get out

If you are afraid of getting into an awkward situation, do not despair. There are several tricks that will help to arrange the interlocutors to yourself and relieve tension:

Can I call you... - Can I call you...
What's your name? - What is your name?
It "s ok (well) if I" l call you ...? - Can I call you...?

Use ecxuse me to get the attention of staff or passers-by when you need help.

Contacts for a business meeting or presentation

For business communication, it’s good to know a few trump cards:

"Sir" - this is how they refer to an adult man.
"Madam" is an appeal to an adult, even an elderly woman.
"Mr." along with the surname - so you can refer to any man.
Mrs. - for a woman who is married and uses her husband's surname.
"Ms" is the common business address for women.

A few words about punctuation

If you ever have to compose a letter to an interlocutor living in England, you need to know some rules of punctuation.

In English, unlike Russian, it is not customary to put a comma after calls.

After you have used the address "Miss", do not put a full stop, as the full form follows the rules: Miss Dana Barret - Miss Dana Barret.

In Europe, another abbreviation is adopted, which has several meanings - Dr (Doctor). It applies not only to employees of medical institutions, but also to those who have an academic degree.

Read and learn new things. Business communication will open doors for you to a new profession and give you a lot of interesting things.

How to address an unfamiliar lady in Russia? There is no universal appeal: a girl, a young lady - everyone uses these and other options in accordance with their own taste. For foreigners, things are somewhat better with this: Fröken and Frau in Sweden, Fraulein and Frau in Germany, Senorita and Senora in Spain, Mademoiselle and Madame in France, Miss and Mrs in England, USA, Australia, Canada and a number of others. There doesn't seem to be much difference between the two words. And yet there are nuances that are not known to everyone.

It would seem, why so strictly separate Mrs. and Miss? The difference is in two letters, and there are a lot of questions. What is the best way to address a stranger? A large number of doubts arise when it comes not to personal communication, but to business correspondence.

The difference between Miss and Mrs is that the former is applied to unknown young and unmarried women, while the latter is only applied to married and widowed women. "Mrs" can be called an older lady if there is no certainty in her marital status.

When a surname is added to the address, you need to carefully choose between "Mrs" and "Miss". The difference is the same - However, in this case, the ladies are a little more likely to be offended if you say "Mrs" to an unmarried woman. Therefore, in case of any doubt, it is better to use the "girlish" option. In extreme cases, you can apologize and make some nice compliment.

As for here, the situation has long been simpler, since the neutral version of "Ms" is increasingly being used, which does not focus on the marital status of the interlocutor. Although in some

In cases, which will be discussed a little later, "Miss" and "Mrs." are also used in official letters. There is a difference here as well, although the neutral "Ms." is generally used. or "Ms" - the presence or absence of a dot depends on whether the correspondence is being conducted with a European or an American.

And yet in some cases marital status can and should be emphasized. This is done, for example, in official invitations to some events when they are intended

the whole family. Then there is an enumeration: Mr, Mrs and Miss, if we are talking about a man, his wife and daughter. Obviously, in such cases, the use of a neutral address is absolutely inappropriate, it will be more organic to look exactly like "Mrs" and "Miss". The difference between this and other cases is that here the emphasis on kinship and marital status of ladies is absolutely natural.

But perhaps in the future, something neutral will be used in these cases, as feminist sentiments are raging in Europe. Women are not inclined to advertise their marital status, therefore they consider the use of separate appeals to married and unmarried ladies to be sexism. Last year, France banned the use of "mademoiselle" in official documents, which was replaced by "madame."

So, in the addresses "Mrs" and "Miss" the difference is still quite large. And the point here is not in the marital status, but rather in the attitude of those around him. In the future, perhaps, there will still be one thing left not only in business correspondence, but also in personal communication, but for now it remains to puzzle over which word is still better to use.

Depending on the situation, we address the people around us in different ways. An address is understood as an intonationally and grammatically separate independent component, which is used to designate a person or (less often) an object that acts as the addressee of a speech. Here are some examples of invocations in English:

Excuse me Sir, could you tell me where the nearest bank is?	Sorry, sir* Can you tell me where is the nearest bank?*
*John* , please tell my parents I will be late.	*John* Please tell my parents that I will be late.
*Mr. Adams* , there is some important information for you.	*Mr. Adams* , there is important information for you.
*Dear Ann* , I was really happy when your letter arrived…	*Dear Ann* , I was really happy when your letter arrived...

As you can see from the examples above, the type of address depends on many factors, in particular, on how formal or, conversely, informal the situation of communication, on whether the form of communication is oral or written, and also on your and the interlocutor's age, gender , social status, profession and subordination relations.

Official forms of addressing one person in English

To address a person in a formal situation, English offers several polite forms. For example, to address a man, the following options apply:

Writing an appeal	Transcription		Translation of the example
Mr.	[ˈmɪstə(r)]	Mr. Thompson, could you repeat your requests, please.	Mr. Thompson, could you repeat your request, please.
Sir		I'm afraid, Sir, our headmaster is on holiday at the moment.	I'm afraid, sir, our director is currently on leave.
Esq.	[ɪˈskwʌɪə]	John S. Brown, Esq., come into the office, please!	Mr. John S. Brown, come into the office, please!

With regard to each of the above forms, it is worth noting the following:

the appeal can be applied to any man, whatever his age, social status and marital status; such an appeal is placed before the name of the addressee, for example: Mr. Johnson - Mr. Johnson;
the appeal Sir should be chosen if the addressee's surname remains unnamed or unknown; in rarer but more honorific cases, Sir is an address to a person holding a knighthood (in the United Kingdom) and is placed either before the given name, for example - Sir Richard / Sir Richard, or before the full name and surname, for example - Sir Elton John / Sir Elton John;
the appeal is placed after the full name. Message from Mr. in such cases, it should not be used anymore, since it will be redundant. This appeal has its roots in the medieval term Esquire (Esquire), which first denoted the knight's squire, and only later belonging to the lower strata of the nobility. The form is currently used quite rarely, more often in the written version.

To address a woman in a formal setting, the following forms are applicable:

Writing an appeal	Transcription	An example of the use of address	Translation of the example
Mrs.	[‘mɪsɪz]	Mrs. Smith, can you speak during the meeting?	Mrs. Smith, could you make a speech at the meeting?
Ms.	[‘mɪz]	Ms. Johns, our company are very sorry about this mistake and offer you some discounts on other goods you need for your business.	Ms. Jones, our company regrets this mistake and offers you some discounts on other products that you need for your business.
Miss	[‘mɪz]	Miss Huston, you are a very promising young teacher!	Miss Houston, you are a very promising young teacher!
madam	[ˈmadəm]	I'm sorry, Madam, could you follow me, please!	Excuse me madam, could you follow me please?

The differences between the above forms of addressing a woman are sometimes very significant, in particular:

appeal Mrs. sometimes addressed to a married woman and requires after her last name / first name and last name / first name and last name of her spouse, for example: Stevenson / Mrs. Jane Stevenson / Mrs. Paul Stevenson. The last option will seem rather unusual to a Russian person, but there is a simple explanation for this, because the form of Mrs. - this is an appeal expressing belonging to a particular man (Mrs. as a form of the possessive case from Mr.);
the address Miss is applicable to an unmarried girl and requires a surname after herself, for example - Miss Brown, less often - a first name, for example Miss Alice;
appeal Ms. occurs more often in business correspondence, while in oral speech one of the two forms indicated above is preferred. This appeal, applicable to any woman regardless of whether she is married, is the result of numerous campaigns for women's equality. After the address Ms., recommended in 1974 by the United Nations, it is necessary to use the surname, for example - J. Simpson;
the address Madam is used if the addressee's surname is not called or unknown, for example - Dear Madam / Dear Madam. In addition, the address Madam is also typical for use in relation to a high-ranking female person, while after it the position she holds can also be called, for example: Madam Managing Director / Madam General Director.

Formal address to several addressees

When verbally addressing a heterosexual audience, the most typical and acceptable form is Ladies and gentlemen! - which is translated into Russian as "Ladies and Gentlemen!" . In a less formal situation, you can find such formulations as Dear friends! - "Dear friends!"; Dear colleagues! - "Dear Colleagues!" or Esteemed colleagues! - "Dear colleagues!" .

In an official written appeal to several persons (presumably mostly males), whose names are unknown, the wording is used Sirs / Lord , For example:

If there is a written appeal to a group of women whose names and surnames are unknown, the wording is applied Mesdames () / Ladies (Mistresses) , For example:

If the appeal in the correspondence is aimed at several addressees, and their names are known, you can use the wording Messrs ( [ˈmes.əz]) / Lord , after which these names are indicated, for example: MessrsJohnson, Smith and Robinson — Gentlemen Johnson, Smith and Robinson. However, this wording is now considered somewhat outdated.

Informal appeal

If you do not go far from the topic of the appeal in the letter, then it should be noted that when referring to a friend or good acquaintance, it is enough to call him by name or address by means of the wording Dear + name (Dear…) or Hello/Hi+ name (Hello, ...) .

In oral speech, it is also considered the most acceptable treatment by name. In this case, the diminutive form of the name can also be used, as in Russian, for example:

Robert (Robert)	Rob(Rob)Bob (Bean) , BobbyBobby), Robbie(Robbie)
Susan(Susan)	Sue(Sue)

However, such forms do not exist for all names, and the treatment of naming the full name is still more common.

Another issue is that, unlike the Russian patronymic name, in English-speaking countries people sometimes have several names, which is associated with the Catholic tradition of “tying” the name of the patron saint or some relative to one name. At the same time, there is no patronymic in English. But of the several names given to a person at baptism, the first one does not always become the one that a person perceives as the main thing and would like to be called that way. For example: William Bradley Pitt is better known as Brad Pitt.

But in order to avoid misunderstandings associated with addressing by name, it is worth checking with the interlocutor: “ What should I call you ?” "What should I call you?" .

Be polite and friendly in communication and the necessary forms of address will certainly serve you in good stead.

The English language has long had its own speech etiquette. As you probably already know, there is no difference between the pronouns “you” and “you”, therefore, when referring to an interlocutor, it is important to choose not only intonation, but also the correct form; use appropriate words and constructions correctly.

In a conversation, it is necessary to take into account the style of communication - for example, the official language requires exact adherence to all greeting and address formulas, and a neutral style of communication (for example, with strangers, work colleagues, neighbors, etc.) can be simpler in expressions.

With friends and relatives, you can also allow a familiar style of communication, in which the forms of addressing the interlocutor will be completely different. Let's look at each style in more detail. Shall we?

How to contact an interlocutor

Let's start with the safest option - ask how the recipient prefers to be addressed.

What should I call you?- What should I call you?
What should I call your sister / mother / the manager?- What should I call your sister / mother / manager?
Can I call you?- May I call you [name]?
Is it okay if I call you?- Is it okay if I call you [friendly name]?
What's your name?- What is your name?

If you heard one of these questions addressed to you, then you can answer as follows:

Please call me. Please call me [name].
You can call me.- You can call me [nickname or short name].

To grab the recipient's attention, use expressions:

Excuse me Sir/Madam.- Excuse me, sir/madam.
"Pardon me, Sir/Madame."- I'm sorry, sir/madam.

We figured out the general points, now let's look at other forms of address.

To a woman

madam A polite way of addressing a woman to a man. Women usually do not address each other in this way, unless, of course, you are a maid or a servant and wish to address the mistress of the house. In that case, this appeal would be appropriate.
Mrs(an abbreviation for the word "Missus") - a form of polite address to a woman. After the word "Mrs" it is required to give the name of the woman's husband. It should be remembered that the words "Mr" and "Mrs" are not used without surnames in colloquial English, as this will sound vulgar.
Miss- a form of address to an unmarried woman, a girl. Be sure to include your first or last name after the word. "Miss" - without a name, surname - a form of address to the teacher, and it has also become a common form of address to the attendants.

To the man

Sir- this form of address does not require the name or surname of the interlocutor after himself. So they turn to strangers, to men equal or older in age, social status or position.
Mr(an abbreviation of the word Mister) - after this word, you need to give the name or surname of the interlocutor.
Son! Sonny! Boy!- a form of addressing older people to unfamiliar young people.
Young man, youth- this is how older people address young men.

To a group of people

When verbally addressing several addressees, the most appropriate form of address would be “ Ladies and gentlemen n!" - "Ladies and Gentlemen!". In a less formal atmosphere, you can hear such an expression as " Dear friends!" - "Dear friends!" or " Dear colleagues!" - "Dear Colleagues!", " Esteemed colleagues!" - "Dear colleagues!"

If you suddenly had the honor of meeting someone from the royal family or a high-ranking person, then you definitely need to know the correct form of address.

Your Majesty- a form of address to the king or queen.
Your Highness to a prince or duke.
Your Lordship— to a Lord or a Justice of the Supreme Court.
Your Honor to a lower court judge.
general/colonel/captain etc. - to a military rank: with or without a surname.
Officer, constable, inspector- to the policeman.
Professor- with or without a surname, in the UK they refer to a person who has the title of professor. But in the United States, the address "Professor" is appropriate for any university teacher.

Speaking of informal communication, let's look at how you can contact friends and family members.

To friends

Of course, everyone knows the appeal “My dear friend!” - "My dear friend!" or "My friend" - "My friend!", But not everyone knows that there are many synonyms for the word "friend". For example:

In British English :

Chap: "Dear old chap, I've missed you!" - "Old man, I missed you!"
Mate(also Australia, New Zealand): "Hey, mate, do you want to hit the pub?" - “Buddy, do you want to visit the pub?”
Pal(also popular in the US): "My most useful acting tip came from my pal John Wayne. Talk low, talk slow, and don't say too much." (c) Michael Caine - "The most helpful acting advice was given to me by my friend John Wayne. Speak in a low voice, speak slowly and speak little. (c) Michael Caine."
Crony: "I"m going to the pub with me cronies." - "I went to the pub with my buddies."
Mucker(Ireland): "What about ye, mucker? Are you in or out?" - "Well, buddy? Are you in business?"

In American English:

homie: "Time to go, homie." "It's time to leave, buddy."
home slice: "You're coming with us tonight, home slice? - Sure thing! - "Are you coming with us tonight, homie? - The stump is clear!
Amigo: "Hey, amigo, long time no see!" - "Hey, amigo, how many years, how many winters!"
Buddy: "I"m going to have some beers with my buddy tonight." - "My friend and I are going to have a couple of foam tonight."
bestie: "You and I - we are the besties for life!" “You and I are best friends for life!”
Dawg: "Waddup, dawg? "Nothing, jus' chillin." "What's up, friend? - Nothing, I'm resting.
Fella: "Good to see you fella!" - "Glad to see you, boy!" Most often used in the meaning of "guy, person (male)": "Who are these fellas?" - Who are these guys?
Dude: "Dude, where's my car?" - "Where's my car, dude?"
Girlfriend: "Hey girl!" - "Hi, slut!" This is how old close friends often turn to each other.

To family members and loved one

Affectionate appeals to close people are also very diverse. In most cases, they are used regardless of gender. Here are some of them:

sweetheart- beloved, beloved.
Dear/dearest- expensive, expensive / most expensive, dear.
Darling- Dear beloved; dear, beloved.
Honey(abbreviated " hon"") - dove; dove / cute; Darling.
muffin- cupcake / bun / pie / favorite / dear.
sugar(also sugarplum, sugar pie, sugar cake etc.) - sweet.
Love- beloved / beloved / my love.
Buttercup- buttercup.
Sunshine- sun.
Baby (babe, bae) - baby, baby.

To the guy

handsome- handsome.
sweetie-pie- dear, dear, lovely, sweet, sun.
Tiger- tiger (a person in whom it is easy to kindle passion).
hot stuff- sex bomb, hot stuff.
Cuddle Cat- sweetheart. (cuddles - hugs in a prone position)
Prince Charming- a prince on a white horse, a handsome prince.
Mr. Perfect (Mr. Amazing etc.) - Mr. Perfect.
honey bear(teddy bear) is a teddy bear.
Captain- captain, commander.
lady killer- Don Juan, womanizer, heartthrob.
Marshmallow- marshmallow.
Superman- superman.

To the girl

sweetie- expensive.
baby doll (baby girl) - baby, doll.
Gorgeous- beauty, beauty.
Honey bun- a bun.
biscuit- a cookie.
cherry- cherry.
cup cake- beauty, honey.
kitten- kitty.
Precious- dear, lovely.
Peanut- baby, baby.
Pumpkin- my good, charm, cutie.
sugar plum (sweet cheeks) - my sweet (the second phrase is said to emphasize the beauty of the girl's figure, or rather her fifth point).
Dumpling- shorty (to an attractive girl of short stature and a seductive figure).

Rules for punctuation when addressing

In English, just like in Russian, appeals are separated by commas. This is taught in schools in both countries. But, in fact, all the British without exception ignore the comma in circulation if the name is at the end of the phrase. And they honestly observe it if the phrase begins with an appeal. For example:

Alice, I think you've had enough!

I think you "ve had enough Alice!

Conclusion

Now you have in your arsenal a whole set for referring to English-speaking comrades. Incidentally, the word comrade” (comrade) you will only find in communist / socialist parties, as well as in Soviet textbooks in English. In other cases, "Comrade Ivanov" is not used. Be well-mannered and friendly in communication, and the right forms of address will serve you well. Absorb English and be polite!

Big and friendly family EnglishDom