Meaning & use
ma'am
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Meaning
nounsingular
A polite way to address a woman, especially one you do not know or one in authority.
Grammar: Used as a form of address, like a name. You say 'ma'am' directly to the person.
Patterns
- yes, ma'am
- no, ma'am
- excuse me, ma'am
- thank you, ma'am
Excuse me, ma'am, could you tell me where the station is?
The waiter smiled and said, 'Good evening, ma'am.'
Yes, ma'am, I'll take care of that right away.
Common combinations
- yes, ma'am
- Yes, ma'am, I'll pass on your message.
- no, ma'am
- No, ma'am, we don't have that in stock.
- excuse me, ma'am
- Excuse me, ma'am, you dropped your glove.
- thank you, ma'am
- Thank you, ma'am, for your help.
Synonyms and how they differ
- madam
- More formal and often used in writing or in very polite speech; 'ma'am' is more common in everyday spoken American English.
- miss
- Used for a young woman or girl, and it does not suggest age in the same way; 'ma'am' can sometimes be taken as suggesting an older woman.
Commonly confused: ma'am or madam?
ma'am vs madam
Both address a woman politely, but 'madam' is more formal and is often used in writing or by servants in old stories; 'ma'am' is the usual spoken form in the US.
Practice
A customer in a US store wants to get a shop assistant's attention politely. What is the most natural thing to say?
Choose one answer.
'Ma'am' is the standard polite way to address an unknown woman in American service settings. 'Madam' is too formal for a store, 'miss' can sound too personal or youthful, and 'woman' alone is rude.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “ma'am”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.