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

Image As Argus grew, Mr. Brinkerhoff and Ms. Sample focused on evangelism. —Alexandra Talty, New York Times, 17 May 2025

Serving two separate terms as prime minister from 1991 to 1996 and from 2001 to 2006, Ms. Zia would help reestablish democratic norms after the turmoil of the previous two decades. —Simon Montlake, Christian Science Monitor, 16 May 2025

Pritzker’s call for peaceful mass protests, mobilization and disruption are all legitimate ways for Americans to express their feelings on national issues and are, in fact, free speech, not threats to free speech or to fellow Americans, as expressed by Ms. Adcock. —Naperville Sun, Chicago Tribune, 16 May 2025

Filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy (Ms. Marvel) will direct Ridley, whose character will come back to the big screen now as a Jedi master in a film set 15 years after the events of 2019's The Rise of Skywalker. —Mekishana Pierre Published, EW.com, 15 May 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