ms

1 of 3

abbreviation (1)

millisecond

Ms.

2 of 3

noun

ˈmiz 

variants US Ms. or British Ms

plural Mss. or Mses. ˈmi-zəz 

—used as a conventional title of courtesy before a woman's surname

My history teacher is Ms. Judson

—used instead of Miss or Mrs. (as when the marital status of a woman is unknown or irrelevant)

Ms. Mary Smith

"I think you do want to dispute the fact that you had a difficult childhood," Ms. Johnston told Mrs. Gore, who was silent for several beats, then agreed.

—Katha Pollitt

But it wasn't until the 1970s that Ms. took its place in the emerging women's liberation movement. It was a heady time for women, and the new prefix represented an important new way for them to define themselves as individuals, rather than in terms of their relationship to men.

—Carol Toller

MS

3 of 3

abbreviation (2)

1

[Italian mano sinistra] left hand

2

manuscript

3

master of science

4

military science

5

Mississippi

6

motor ship

7

multiple sclerosis

Examples of ms in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Sabine County Sheriff's Office J.P. MacDonough: During the course of the investigation and during my interviews … with family and friends … Matthew had intended to ask Ms. Lewis to marry him. —Peter Van Sant, CBS News, 4 Jan. 2025

For their first date, Dr. West invited Ms. Bolton to join him in one of his favorite pastimes. —Shivani Vora, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2025

In partnership with Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund and Purpose Over Pain, the design group worked with conceptual artist Hank Willis Thomas to bring Ms. Bosley and Ms. Nance-Holt’s vision to life. —Jacob Posner, The Christian Science Monitor, 3 Jan. 2025

The last scene shows Mark finding a photo confirming coworker Ms. Casey to be his wife before Milchick deactivates the overtime contingency. —Dan Perry, Newsweek, 2 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

probably blend of Miss and Mrs.

First Known Use

Noun

1901, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

Ms.

noun

(ˌ)miz 

plural Mss. or Mses. ˈmiz-əz 

—used instead of Miss or Mrs. (as when it is unknown or unimportant whether the woman addressed is married or single)

Etymology

Noun

probably a combination of Miss and Mrs.

Medical Definition

ms

1 of 2 abbreviation

millisecond

MS

2 of 2 abbreviation

1

mass spectrometry

2

master of science

3

multiple sclerosis