Miss Vs Ms

tracylongo

Hey ladies,

Does anyone know when to use Miss vs. Ms? I have heard Miss is for younger... but what is the age cut off????? I am so confused.

Thanks!!!!

banana468

CMGr is correct. Many single women I know prefer to be Ms (those mid 30s and under). If you aren't sure your beat bet is to ask.

ootmother2

Ms. actually came about when women entered the professional working world.  To avoid offense, Ms. was pretty much the same as Mr. as it didn't give away the age or marital status of a woman.

When in doubt, ask.  I know many young ladies who would be offended by Miss or Mrs. in business because professionally, it doesn't matter.

I also ask what is prefered socially but I don't know if that's possible for you

Beazilla

Actually Ms. came about at the same time as Miss and Mrs.  in the 17th century, all as abbrevations of Misstress. Ms. just fell out of use until the 20th century when women began holding white-collar jobs and married female celebrities didn't change their names. It came back into use decades earlier than the 1970s in print publications and then was adopted by business, and then for social purposes. Miss is partially age related since older unmarried women or single mothers were addressed as Mrs. as a sign of respect until Ms. became fashionable again.

Ms., like Mr. doesn't signify anything about marital status.

ootmother2

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_invites-paper_miss-vs-ms-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:cd062f89-8272-496a-b0ab-225e1f87acecDiscussion:9addbdea-e734-4849-8e12-f6c6b9c85624Post:395ee61d-14c4-4bf3-94ef-ea48a0a6236b">Re: Miss Vs Ms</a>:
[QUOTE]Actually Ms. came about at the same time as Miss and Mrs.  in the 17th century, all as abbrevations of Misstress. Ms. just fell out of use until the 20th century when women began holding white-collar jobs and married female celebrities didn't change their names. It came back into use decades earlier than the 1970s in print publications and then was adopted by business, and then for social purposes. Miss is partially age related since older unmarried women or single mothers were addressed as Mrs. as a sign of respect until Ms. became fashionable again. Ms., like Mr. doesn't signify anything about marital status.
Posted by Beazilla[/QUOTE]


Fantastic info to know!  Guess I was misinformed or half informed ;)

kac12170

Honestly, I just put Ms. on the inviations of all unmarried women. I can't imagine that anyone would really care if it said Ms. instead of Miss.