mademoiselle

noun

ma·​de·​moi·​selle ˌmad-mwə-ˈzel 

ˌma-də-,

-mə-ˈzel,

 sometimes  mam-ˈzel

plural mademoiselles ˌmad-mwə-ˈzelz 

ˌma-də-,

-mə-ˈzelz

or mesdemoiselles ˌmād-mwə-ˈzel 

ˌmā-də-,

-mə-ˈzel

1

: an unmarried French girl or woman

—used as a title equivalent to Miss for an unmarried woman not of English-speaking nationality

2

: a French governess

3

: silver perch sense a

Examples of mademoiselle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Doja also matches the vibe of a mademoiselle while putting her French to the test and posing for photos in front of the Eiffel Tower. —Michael Saponara, Billboard, 20 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English madamoiselle, from Middle French, from Old French ma damoisele, literally, my (young) lady

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for mademoiselle

• materiel
• subparallel
• antiparallel
• antipersonnel
• bagatelle
• caravel
• carousel
• carrousel
• citadel
• clientele
• commonweal
• decibel

Kids Definition

mademoiselle

noun

ma·​de·​moi·​selle ˌmad-(ə-)mə-ˈzel 

-mwə-ˈzel;

mam-ˈzel

plural mademoiselles -ˈzelz  or mesdemoiselles ˌmād-(ə-)mə-ˈzel 

-mwə-ˈzel

—used by or to French-speaking people as a title equivalent to Miss