Mind Our English

More on Ms

In reference to the article “The distaff side” by Dr Lim Chin Lam (MOE, June 15), reader Nelson Wong writes on the pronunciation of Ms.

“Incidentally, Ms, pronounced /muhz/, is a newly invented honorific to not specify the marital status of a woman.” (as stated in the article)

I wish to add that there is more than one pronunciation of Ms. It can be pronounced as miz or muhz as stated in the following dictionaries:

i) Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

8th Edition;

ii) Collins English Dictionary 21st Century

Edition;

iii) The New Penguin English Dictionary;

iv) BBC English Dictionary;

v) Cambridge International Dictionary

of English;

vi) Merriam-Webster Collegiate

Dictionary 10th Edition.

As a matter of fact, Ms is a blend of Miss and Mrs used from 1950s onwards – marital status unknown or irrelevant.