ma'am
/ˈmæm/
ma'am noun: a form of address for a woman: contraction of madam.
Noun
ma'am (plural ma'ams)
- A form of address for a woman: contraction of madam.
- Madam me no Madam, but learn to retrench your vvords; and ſay Mam; as yes Mam, and no Mam, as other Ladies VVomen do. Madam! 'tis a year in pronouncing.1668 June 22 (first performance; Gregorian calendar), John Dryden, An Evening’s Love, or The Mock-Astrologer. […], In the Savoy [London]: […] T[homas] N[ewcomb] for Henry Herringman, […], published...
- Gad take my Soul, Mame, I hope I ſhall pleaſe you now— […] I vovv to Gad, Mame, I vvas ſo taken up vvith my good Fortune, I did not obſerve the extream Fancy of your Ladiſhip's VVedding-Cloaths— […]1697, [John Vanbrugh], “[Part I]”, in Æsop. A Comedy. […], 3rd edition, London: […] Richard Wellington, […], published 1702, →OCLC, Act V, page 45
- A polite and formal way to address a woman.
- Ma'am, will you be attending the dinner this evening?
- A respectful term of address to a woman of higher rank or position.
- – Sergeant, have the platoon in formation and ready for inspection at 0800.
– Aye aye, ma'am.
- – Sergeant, have the platoon in formation and ready for inspection at 0800.
- A title for a married woman.
- That is Ma'am Smith, the matriarch of the Smith families.
- Yes, my dravving-room is an abſolute regiſter-office for candidate actors, and poets vvithout character;—then to be continually alarmed vvith Miſſes and Ma'ams piping hiſteric changes on Juliets and Dorindas, Pollys and Ophelias; […]1781, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, The Critic: Or A Tragedy Rehearsed […], London: […] T[homas] Becket, […], →OCLC, Act I, scene i, pages 4–5
- Synonyms:
- ball and chain, better half, boss, bride, dutch, 'er indoors, frow, geezer, her indoors, lady
- A female schoolteacher; a schoolmarm.
- Synonyms:
- schoolma'am
Verb
ma'am (third-person singular simple present ma'ams, present participle ma'aming, simple past and past participle ma'amed)
- To address (a woman) as "ma'am".
- ["]And, fellas, I've got to tell you that your Texas manners are perfect. Y'all have about ma'amed me to death. But you can call me Lucy from here on out. Got it?" / "Yes, ma'am—I mean, Lucy," Joseph complied, taking the sledgehammer and grinning as he looked from it to the blue wall.2014, Debra Clopton, Her Unexpected Cowboy, New York, N.Y.: Harlequin Love Inspired, →ISBN, page 42
ma'am meaning in Hindi, Urdu, Bengali and Gujarati
ma'am in Hindi
- chiefly used as a form of address: contraction of madam — see also madam
- महोदया mahodyā
ma'am in Urdu
- chiefly used as a form of address: contraction of madam — see also madam
- بی بی bī bī
ma'am in Bengali
- chiefly used as a form of address: contraction of madam — see also madam
- মেম, ম্যাডাম mêḍam, আজ্ঞা ajna, জী ji
ma'am in Gujarati
- chiefly used as a form of address: contraction of madam — see also madam
- મેમ
More languagesFewer languages
- ma'am in Nepali
- महिला mahilā, हजुर hajura
- ma'am in Malay
- puan
- ma'am in Indonesian
- puan
- ma'am in Persian
- سرکار خانم
- ma'am in Thai
- แหม่ม mɛ̀m
Examples of ma'am in a sentence
- "You're very, very kind to me, ma'am," said Oliver.1837 August, Boz [pseudonym; Charles Dickens], “In Which Oliver Is Taken Better Care of than He Ever Was Before. With Some Particulars...
- But, since you do refer to me, now look at me, ma'am.1854, Charles Dickens, “Effects in the Bank”, in Hard Times. For These Times, London: Bradbury & Evans, […], →OCLC, 2nd book (Reaping)...
- Every time she begins to get out a porter rushes up crying "Hurry up, ma'am; train's going!"—and pushes her in again!1944 May–June, “When the Circle was Steam Operated”, in The Railway Magazine, London: Tothill Press, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 150:
- Then Porter said, "How would I need them in order to win, ma'am?" expressing some level of disapproval with the question while letting out a laugh.2025 October 8, Jay Stahl, “Katie Porter goes viral again. This time, for berating a reporter.”, in USA Today:
Synonyms of ma'am
16 more synonymsFewer synonyms
Forms of ma'am
| Noun | |
|---|---|
| plural | ma'ams |
| alternative form | mum |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | ma'ams |
| present participle | ma'aming |
| past participle | ma'amed |
| past | ma'amed |
Origin of ma'am
The noun is a contraction of madam, and represents a regional pronunciation of that word in the United Kingdom. The verb is derived from the noun.
Words formed from ma'am
Phrases with ma'am
Words that rhyme with ma'am
47 more rhymesFewer rhymes
Questions about ma'am
- What does ma'am mean?
- Ma'am means a form of address for a woman: contraction of madam.
- What is ma'am in Hindi?
- Ma'am in Hindi is महोदया (mahodyā). See Ma'am meaning in Hindi.
- How do you use ma'am in a sentence?
- "You're very, very kind to me, ma'am," said Oliver.
- What part of speech is ma'am?
- Ma'am can be a noun or a verb.
- How do you pronounce ma'am?
- Ma'am is pronounced /ˈmæm/.
- What is the plural of ma'am?
- The plural of ma'am is ma'ams.
Words near ma'am in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: ma'am (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-ma'am.wav, En-us-ma'am.oga.
Cite this entry: “ma'am.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/ma%27am. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.