a title of respect prefixed to the surname or full name of a married woman.
Mrs. Jones; Mrs. Susan Jones.
a title prefixed to a mock surname that is used to represent possession of a particular attribute, identity, etc., especially in an idealized or excessive way.
Mrs. Punctuality.
Mrs., first recorded in the early 17th century, was originally, like Miss, an abbreviation of mistress. Mrs. and mistress were at first used interchangeably in all contexts, but by the second half of that century, the written form of the abbreviation was largely confined to use as a title preceding a woman's surname. By the early 19th century, reduction of the medial consonant cluster had contracted the usual pronunciation of the title from to or . The contracted pronunciation used other than as a title was not considered standard, and today, locutions like Let me discuss it with the missis are perceived as old-fashioned. Currently, two main types of pronunciation for the abbreviation occur in the United States; and sometimes are the common forms in the North and North Midland, while in the South Midland and South, the prevalent types are and , the latter homophonous with the usual pronunciation of the abbreviation Ms.
See Ms.
Abbreviation of mistress
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Mrs Justice Lambert rejected this on Wednesday - instead opting to adjourn to await further details on the police investigation, but urging the police to "work with a degree of urgency".
From BBC • May 6, 2026
But the case was adjourned on Wednesday after police reopened a criminal investigation, prompting Mrs Justice Lambert to say: "As soon as this case is ready it will be heard."
From BBC • May 6, 2026
Prof Waters has said the new system "failed to learn the lessons" from Mrs Perry's death, with a continuing "risk to the health and wellbeing of teachers and school leaders".
From BBC • Apr. 30, 2026
It included a segment in which he addressed the first lady in the audience and said, "Mrs Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow."
From Barron's • Apr. 27, 2026
"I thank you for all your help, Mrs Spring," she said, "but you can go home now."
From "The Witches" by Roald Dahl
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
