Mrs. or Ms. When You Aren't Sure?
So "Mr." works in any situation (well, in the US at least), but "Mrs." (missus) and Ms." (miss) are dependent on if the person is married or not. Kind of archaic and doesn't really reflect our current societal norms or values, but that's a whole other conversation.
So if you want to be polite in an interview or phone call, and you're not sure which to use, which is the default to which you typically fall back? Ma'am works of course, but not if you want to include their name when addressing them (it's a great subtle way to form a connection and be more personal after all).
A quick google search returns this as the top answer: "Use “Ms.” when you are not sure of a woman's marital status, if the woman is unmarried and over 30 or if she prefers being addressed with a marital-status neutral title." That might be a convention set down by someone at some point in history, but it seems like a potential landmine to me...you never know what a person finds offensive for whatever reason they might have.
Any thoughts or opinions on the matter?
Ms. Is not miss. It’s a more neutral form closer to miz. It is correct in most situations. The alternative is to ask politely, “How do you prefer to be addressed?”
"Ms." Is not the same as "Miss". Miss refers to an unmarried lady. Ms. Was added much later and refers to a female whose marital status is not disclosed.
This is so funny because I was writing an email this morning for work and wasn’t sure to put Ms. or Mrs., so I stuck with Ms.. the reason being that Ms. is safer. Most women will not correct you if you say Ms. even if they are married—like you mentioned it’s more neutral. However, if someone addressed me as Mrs. and since I’m not married—I would automatically say “oh I’m not married” out of habit and then it might be awkward lol
I'm so charming in person and online that I just use Mister or Miss and I do fine.
Yikes! Marital Status is a sensitive topic in the workplace. If your Manager/Supervisor has family photos on the desk, then no questions necessary. Gender observations are a little tricky....BUT! Watch your parking spot.....
I have never thought about it as a woman. Nowadays, you will never know what people offend. It is very helpful you pointed out.
It's funny that Dalllas Hermanson brought up this issue and not once in his replies to anyone of the women who responded, has he used the terms "Mrs. or Ms." 🤔 and these too are people he doesn't know.
Always Ms.
i was always told to use Mrs if you dont know. I think both Mrs & Ms should just be replaced with Queen.
I find it just as easy to address the person by their name.