madame
/məˈdæm/ noun
Also a form of madam
Forms madames mesdames
- noun A title equivalent to Mrs. or Ms., used for French-speaking women and (by custom) certain other individuals. It is abbreviated as Mme. “The Queen welcomed President and Madame De Gaulle.”
Etymology
Borrowed from French madame, from Old French ma dame (“my lady”). Doublet of madam and Madonna.
Webster’s 1913
- noun My lady; --a French title formerly given to ladies of quality; now, in France, given to all married women. Chaucer.
Etymology [F., fr. ma my (L. mea) + dame dame. See Dame, and cf. Madonna.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “madame”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details