This article is about Mistress as a form of address. For other uses, see Mistress.
Mistress is an old form of address for a woman. It implies "lady of the house", especially a woman who is head of a household.
An example is Mistress Quickly in Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor. The title did not necessarily distinguish between married and unmarried women.
The title Mrs. is an abbreviation of Mistress, and the titles Miss and Ms. are also derived from it.
See also
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