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Miss, Mrs. or Madam? The demise of Ms?

Harp

I'll Lock Up
Messages
8,508
Location
Chicago, IL US
Ms.

KAT said:
no girl likes to hear "Fräulein" anymore. And nobody is using it , except for older people.Young women wanna feel mature and think it sounds weird and too old fashioned...maaaaaaan that what its about...:eusa_doh: lol
well i still like and prefer it, It sounds way nicer and I dont want people calling me "Frau"[huh] ..that makes me oldlol

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fr%C3%A4ulein

BIS BALD
IHR FRÄULEIN KATHARINA B. :rolleyes:

Du bist schon fraulein.;)
 

Paisley

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,439
Location
Indianapolis
I'd much rather be called Ma'am than miss. Ma'am is a term of respect for a grown-up lady, which I've been for a long time. I hope to be a grande dame someday.
 

Barbigirl

Practically Family
Messages
915
Location
Issaquah, WA
Ms.

Matt Deckard said:
KAT can elaborate, right dear? I've said too much already.

I was born in Texas... Big hats big patriotism and big manners.

So who here uses Miss or Mrs. in their professional careers?

I always worked under the assumption that if you did not know the marital status of a woman you used Ms.

All professional mail I get comes to Ms. Donovan, and I seem to be called that by a few people I work with. I sense they can't call me or refer to me as Barbi with straight face. La la la Perhaps I should give them the benefit of the doubt that they are being respectful.

I always mark Ms. on forms I am filling out.
 

Nashoba

One Too Many
Messages
1,384
Location
Nasvhille, TN & Memphis, TN
I've used all three but I'm not particularly fond of Ms. to me it always sounded harsh. I live in the south, I'm used to being called ma'am and calling people ma'am. My husband's marines have called me ma'am for as long as I can remember. Part of that is probably my husband's rank, but even when I told them they didn't have to call me ma'am they still would. Either that or they would switch to Mrs. Fender, which drives me crazier (i equate it with my mother in law and I don't know it's just wierd to me) so I just gave up and let them call me whatever they want.
It's the same thing when I refuse to call officers anything but their rank or sir. It's courtesy and I was trained well ;)
Nash
 

Miss Crisplock

A-List Customer
Messages
448
Location
Long Beach, CA
Hmm. Now just where whould I come in on this question?

I got sick of the Ms.. So now I am Miss Crisplock. I Sir and Ma'am all over the place.

When teaching this was a bit of an issue. There were people who refused to call me with the honorific "Miss" when I first started using it, as they prefered and used their first names. Shortly after noticing that I wouldn't respond to anything else, they adapted.
Since American honorifics don't denote age like French or German ones do, all that is being indicated is respect and in the case of ladies marital status. I don't see why it should be a matter of offence. Even if I am called Mrs or the dreaded Ms. by a student once in a while, they are at least trying to be polite.
 

Elaina

One Too Many
Before I got married for the first time, I used Miss. After I got married I used Ms. but I kept my maiden name. When I got divorced, I kept Ms. When I married the second time, I took my husband's name. Mrs. or Ms. was okay.

When I seperated from my second husband I kept his name. I used Ms. James until I got remarried. I now use Mrs. in everything I do. I sign my checks Mrs. G.V. Flessas.

To me Ms meant you were either too old to be a Miss or divorced.

Elaina
 

MrBern

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,469
Location
DeleteStreet, REDACTCity, LockedState
Best actor or best actress?

KAT said:
no girl likes to hear "Fr?§ulein" anymore. And nobody is using it , except for older people.Young women wanna feel mature and think it sounds weird and too old fashioned...maaaaaaan that what its about...:eusa_doh: lol
well i still like and prefer it, It sounds way nicer and I dont want people calling me "Frau"[huh] ..that makes me oldlol

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fr%C3%A4ulein

BIS BALD
IHR FR?ÑULEIN KATHARINA B. :rolleyes:

I had a girlfriend who got very annoyed whenever I called her "Fr?§ulein"...which was all the time. But she was also amused by my german phrases picked up thru movies & tv.

Has anyone noticed that female actors are no longer actresses, except when receiving an Oscar?
 

Rosie

One Too Many
Messages
1,827
Location
Bed Stuy, Brooklyn, NY
Marc Chevalier said:
Ladies, speak up: would any of you like to be called a broad? Or would you like your husbands or boyfriends to call you their "old lady"? lol

.

I am guilty of sometimes calling other women broad, or the horrible word chick, but never to their faces. Usually it's about someone with whom I've disagreed or don't care for, not many people. I had an administrator who I referred to as broad ALL of the time.

Also, my brother uses broad but, I think he got that from me, not sure.
 

Rosie

One Too Many
Messages
1,827
Location
Bed Stuy, Brooklyn, NY
Marc Chevalier said:
I much prefer "madam" over "ma'am" (which has a grating nasal sound to it, especially when spoken with a twang).



.


For me, madam is for a much older lady, like 70+ and even then, one who is somewhat elegant. [huh] I usually call older women ma'am, younger ones Ms. if they are about my age 20's + and of course, Miss for younger girls. If I am addressing more than one woman no matter their ages, it's usually "Good Morning Ladies".
 

sonsie

New in Town
Messages
31
Location
Midwest, USA
<shudder> I'd forgotten about broad, old lady, ball and chain, chick or chickeebaby(which is kind of beatnik so semi ok). I wouldn't protest too loudly to babe. I definitely approve of cutie-patootie, and I would welcome anyone who can imitate Jerry Lewis decently to say..Laadyyy..Heyy Laaddyyyy.

sonsie
 

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