Mrs. vs Ms.

Question

When do you use Ms. and Mrs.? Say for example, a woman is either divorced or widowed. Do you use Ms.? or is Mrs. Still appropriate? Or do you use Ms. for the divorced person and Mrs. for the widow?

Any input would be appreciated!

Thanks,

JMartini

BarbaraPA · Accepted Answer

You use whatever the woman in question prefers, and if you don't know, you use "Ms."

In the old days, when Ann Smith married Robert Parker, she became Mrs. Robert Parker.
If she were widowed, she was still Mrs. Robert Parker.

If she got divorced, she was Mrs. Ann Parker. That rule is now seen as ridiculously old fashioned.

These days, Ann may be Ms. Ann Smith after her marriage, or Ms. Ann Parker, or Ms. Ann Smith-Parker, and she may be any of those things if she gets divorced as well, even if she chose to be Mrs. Robert Parker when whe was married.

As a huge generalization, if the woman chose to be Mrs. Parker when she was married, she probably would choose to be Mrs. Parker as a widow. What she chooses after a divorce is anyone's guess.

If you don't know for sure, use Ms.

Anonymous · Answer

In the UK you use Ms for an older spinster (unmarried woman) when Miss would seem inappropriate or when you do not know a woman's marital status.
It is quite insulting to call a married woman,widow or divorcee Ms.

Anonymous · Answer

If you have to write to a woman and you have no idea of her marital status, you would generally use "Miss."  A woman who is known to be married, or a widow, would generally be called "Mrs."  A divorced woman would generally be called "Miss." What I'm trying to get at is that you would not use "Ms." unless the woman has previously used this title for herself, as some women are offended by this title.

Mrs. vs Ms.

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