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Ms.
10 dictionary results for: Ms.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
Ms.       [miz] Pronunciation Key
plural Mses.       [miz-uhz] Pronunciation Key.
1.a title of respect prefixed to a woman's name or position: unlike Miss or Mrs., it does not depend upon or indicate her marital status.
2.a title prefixed to a mock surname that is used to represent possession of a particular attribute, identity, etc., esp. in an idealized or excessive way: Ms. Cooperation.
Ms. came into use in the 1950s as a title before a woman's surname when her marital status was unknown or irrelevant. In the early 1970s, the use of Ms. was adopted and encouraged by the women's movement, the reasoning being that since a man's marital status is not revealed by the title Mr., there is no reason that a woman's status should be revealed by her title. Since then Ms. has gained increasing currency, especially in business and professional use. Some women prefer the traditional Miss (still fully standard for a woman whose marital status is unknown and for an unmarried woman) or, when appropriate, Mrs.
Newspaper editors sometimes reject Ms. except in quoted matter. Others use whichever of the three titles a woman prefers if her preference is known. Increasingly, newspapers avoid the use of all three titles by referring to women by their full names in first references (Sarah Brady; Margaret Bourke-White) and by surname only, as with men, in subsequent references: Brady, Bourke-White. Since all three titles—Ms., Miss, and Mrs.—remain in use, the preference of the woman being named or addressed or the practice of the organization or publication in which the name is to appear is often followed.
Ms. is pronounced (miz), a pronunciation that is identical with one standard South Midland and Southern U.S. pronunciation of Mrs.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
ms  
abbr.  
  1. or ms. manuscript
  2. millisecond

American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Ms. also Ms       (mĭz)  Pronunciation Key 
n.   pl. Mses. also Mses also Mss. or Mss (mĭz'ĭz)
  1. Used as a courtesy title before the surname or full name of a woman or girl: Ms. Doe; Ms. Jane Doe.
  2. Used in informal titles for a woman to indicate the epitomizing of an attribute or activity: Ms. Fashionable; Ms. Volleyball.


[Blend of Miss and Mrs.]

Usage Note: Many of us think of Ms. or Ms as a fairly recent invention of the women's movement, but in fact the term was first suggested as a convenience to writers of business letters by such publications as the Bulletin of the American Business Writing Association (1951) and The Simplified Letter, issued by the National Office Management Association (1952). Ms. is now widely used in both professional and social contexts. As a courtesy title Ms. serves exactly the same function that Mr. does for men, and like Mr. it may be used with a last name alone or with a full name. Furthermore, Ms. is correct regardless of a woman's marital status, thus relegating that information to the realm of private life, where many feel it belongs anyway. Some women prefer Miss or Mrs., however, and courtesy requires that their wishes be respected.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Ms. 
(pl. Mses), 1949, considered a blend of Miss and Mrs.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
MS. 
1670, abbreviation of L. manu scriptum (see manuscript); the plural is MSS, after the custom in Mod.L.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
ms.

noun
a form of address for a woman [syn: Ms

American Heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition - Cite This Source - Share This
Ms.

A title used before a woman's name, pronounced “Miz” and corresponding to Mr. before a man's.

Note: Feminists have urged the use of Ms. because, unlike Miss or Mrs., it does not identify a woman by her marital status. (See feminism.)

[Chapter:] Conventions of Written English


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