monsieur

noun mon·sieur \ məs-ˈyər , -ˈyə , məsh- ; mə-ˈsir \

|Updated on: 17 Jul 2018

Definition of monsieur

plural messieurs play \məs-ˈyə(r)(z), məsh-, mās-; mə-ˈsir(z)\

: a Frenchman of high rank or station —used as a title equivalent to Mister and prefixed to the name of a Frenchman

Recent Examples of monsieur from the Web

Both bakeries share the same menu of breakfast pastries, desserts, artisan breads, cookies, sandwiches (a croquet monsieur is offered, naturally), salads and soup, but only the Arden store features afternoon tea.

— allen pierleoni, sacbee, "'Estelle 2.0' culminates lifelong dream for Sacramento baker," 30 June 2018
The croque-monsieur was first served at the beginning of the 20th century—according to legend, in 1910 at a café on Paris's Boulevard des Capucines.

— daniel boulud, ELLE Decor, "Daniel's Dish: Croque-Monsieur and -Madame," 23 Feb. 2010
Meine damen und herren, mesdames et messieurs, ladies and gentlemen, this musical, based on stories by Christopher Isherwood, is a full-throated, tuneful love triangle set in 1931 Berlin.

— john timpane, Philly.com, "Musicals this fall: Norm from 'Cheers' as J. Edgar Hoover and lots of old faves," 6 Sep. 2017
Obviously, a Parisien croque monsieur for lunch; for dinner, Le Terroir Parisien, Yannick Alleno's uber Parisien bistro in the 5th.

— jack dancy, Town & Country, "How to Plan a Trip to Europe," 5 Oct. 2016
Who serves a croque monsieur, albondigas soup and tri-tip dressed with dry vermouth-spiked creamed spinach — in a sports bar?

— linda zavoral, The Mercury News, "San Jose: Willow Glen chef hanging up his toque (for now)," 26 Apr. 2017
Meat: As with a croque monsieur, the meat of choice is sliced ham.

— special to the washington post, The Denver Post, "The Monte Cristo: The fried American sandwich that’s a little bit French," 4 Apr. 2017
After the last debutante is placed on stage, the jeunes messieurs bow to the debutantes and in turn, the young ladies do a group curtsey.

— sue strachan, NOLA.com, "Le Debut des Jeunes Filles de la Nouvelle Orleans kicks off debutante season," 26 June 2017
Her picks for the main meal: herring foam and caviar or pigs trotters for the 'rents and a croque monsieur for the tike.

— sarah rowe, Condé Nast Traveler, "The Best Things to Do in Paris With Kids," 24 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'monsieur.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of monsieur

Middle French, literally, my lord

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1512

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

Other Forms of Address Terms

appellation, beatitude, brethren, emeritus, esquire, sire, sous

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See words that rhyme with monsieur Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about monsieur

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monsieur

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monsieur

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Origin and Etymology of monsieur

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