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French etiquette re names


Quillan
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I meant to ask this before but never got round to it.

If you have a ladies name (surname and first name) but do not know if she is married or not what would be the correct way of addressing her when writing a letter? Do you assume she is single until told otherwise?

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I suspect politeness would imply the other way round.  Memory tells me that one beyond the age of "discretion" or in any doubt of age, Mlle becomes Mme even if single.

Interesting, 'cos I've been addressed as Mlle even at my age, but they were trying to flatter!!

Maybe wait to see if our french contributors can give a definitive response, but in doubt (as with tu/vous) always aim for the polite .. so unless you know the lady is very young, my advice would be to use Mme.

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I didn't think of the age thing which I wouldn't know.

I get reservation requests and enquiries from many different websites and most contain the title except for one. They also contain first and surname but of course no age. Does that help? It is not such a big thing really but I wuld like to be 'correct' as it seems to be polite to use the right title.

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[quote user="Quillan"]

[quote user="woolybanana"]MadamE, Quillan[/quote]

Yes Wooly of course your right (as always), I will try and remember. [;-)]

[/quote]

Q, "you'RE right......"

Sorry, just joining in the fun............no offence meant![:)]

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[quote user="sweet 17"]

Oh well, since you are all now at it, I might as well split hairs:

Did you know that M., short for Monsieur, takes a fullstop but Mme, short for Madame, doesn't?[:P]

[/quote]

I remember something about this from school  (the war had ended and the Kaiser had gone into exile).

A "rule" which went something like if the abbreviation ends with the same letter as the abbreviated word then there is no full stop, otherwise there should be a full stop.

It sounds like those other silly rules about never splitting infinitives and never ending sentences with prepositions.

 

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[quote user="sweet 17"]

It's fun though, don't you think, Clarkkent?

Guaranteed to stop any free-flowing conversation in its tracks and label you as a pernickety fossil from another age?[:D]

[/quote]It is fun but don't you get irritated by your instead of you're and its and it's being confused. Not to mention formally being used when they mean formerly. But as a pernickety fossil with a strong  measure of pedantry it does keep my brain occupied. [:D]
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[quote user="woolybanana"]predatory fossil with pedantic tendency? Hmmmm, could get you arrested in some parts of Blighty![/quote]

Oh Wools, now YOU'RE getting confused!  He DIDN'T say paedophilic fossil....etc........you're getting a bit hard of hearing, maybe?[:-))][:P]

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[quote user="Rabbie"]It is fun but don't you get irritated by your instead of you're and its and it's being confused. Not to mention formally being used when they mean formerly. But as a pernickety fossil with a strong  measure of pedantry it does keep my brain occupied. [:D][/quote]

My new pet hate:

He was SAT in front of traffic lights.

He was STOOD at the counter

So, would they also say:

He was ATE his dinner

He was TOOK the air?

Gets my goat each and every single time.

I have heard Cameron make the same error on TV and I just KNEW that I could NEVER vote for a man with his fancy Eton education and who makes such simple mistakes that would have any cat chortling.

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