Mrs
- 1Abbreviation of Mistress, pronounced missus: the title used before the surname or full name of a married, widowed or divorced woman.
Mrs Whitfield chaired the committee for over a decade.
The letter was addressed to Mrs Eleanor Hart.
UsageUsually before the surname or full name (Mrs Hart, Mrs Eleanor Hart), not the first name alone. It is said like missus.
Note
The title began as a shortening of mistress and for most of its history marked standing, not marriage: until the 1800s any woman of rank could be Mrs, husband or none. Only then did it narrow to married, divorced and widowed women, paired with the married surname. The plural is Mmes or Mesdames; Mrses exists but is rare. American English writes it with a period (Mrs.); British English usually leaves the period off.
Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 3 facts
- Mrs originated as a shortening of mistress. en.wiktionary.org
- Historically, Mrs indicated social standing rather than marriage and could designate unmarried women until the nineteenth century. repository.cam.ac.uk
- During the nineteenth century, Mrs became increasingly restricted to married, divorced and widowed women, used with their married surnames. en.wiktionary.org
- 2Someone's wife, referred to informally as "the Mrs" when speaking about her to others.
I'd love to come fishing on Saturday, but I'll have to run it by the Mrs first.
He and the Mrs are spending the holidays with her parents in Ohio.
UsageSaid with the (the Mrs), usually about your own wife when talking to friends.
Use it in a sentence
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Origin
This is a shortened form of "mistress."
Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
- Mrs is a shortened form of mistress. en.wiktionary.org