Title and Honorific Abbreviations
54 abbreviations · part of Common Abbreviations
Courtesy titles, honorifics and official titles such as Mr., Mrs., Ms., Dr., Gov. and Sen. go before a name, while suffixes and post-nominal letters such as Jr., Esq. and OBE follow it. American English puts a period after abbreviated titles (Mr., Dr.), whereas British English normally omits it when the abbreviation ends with the last letter of the full word (Mr, Dr, Cllr). News style guides such as AP abbreviate some titles before a full name (Gov., Sen., Rep.) and spell others out, and forms of address in speech and on envelopes follow their own conventions, noted on each page.
| Abbreviation | Stands for | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Ald. | Alderman | Refers to a member of a city council in some US cities, notably Chicago, and historically to senior members of English borough councils. |
| Amb. | Ambassador | Applies to a diplomat of the highest rank accredited to a foreign government or an international organization, used before the name in lists, briefings and… |
| Assoc. | Associate | Indicates a rank or role, most commonly in Assoc. |
| Asst. | Assistant | Abbreviation for assistant in job titles, such as "Asst. |
| Atty. | Attorney | Common abbreviation for "attorney" in signature blocks, case files, letterhead and forms, as in "Atty. for Plaintiff". |
| Atty. Gen. | Attorney General | Abbreviates the title of the chief legal officer of a government, such as the US Attorney General, who heads the Department of Justice, or a state attorney general. |
| Bt. | Baronet | Placed after the name of the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary British title that carries the prefix "Sir" but ranks below the peerage. |
| CBE | Commander of the Order of the British Empire | Highest rank of the Order of the British Empire below the knighthoods, awarded for a prominent role at national level or highly distinguished work. |
| Cllr | Councillor | Standard British, Irish, Australian and New Zealand title for an elected member of a local council, placed before the person's name. |
| DBE | Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire | Female equivalent of KBE, the second class of the Order of the British Empire, entitling the holder to be called "Dame" before her first name. |
| DCI | Detective Chief Inspector | Senior British detective rank, often held by the officer leading a major investigation such as a murder inquiry. |
| Del. | Delegate | Used for members of a legislature called the House of Delegates, as in Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia, and for the nonvoting delegates who represent US… |
| Dep. | Deputy | Sheriff's deputies in US counties use this title before their names, and it also prefixes officials who act for or below a principal, such as a deputy director or… |
| Det. | Detective | Investigator's title in police departments, placed before the name in news stories, police reports and courtroom testimony. |
| DI | Detective Inspector | British police rank immediately below detective chief inspector, typically supervising a team of detective sergeants and constables. |
| Dir. | Director | Shortened form of director seen in org charts, signatures and tables, where a director is a senior manager leading a function or department, typically above manager and… |
| Dr. | Doctor | Precedes the name of a person holding a doctoral degree such as a Ph.D., or a medical, dental or veterinary qualification. |
| DS | Detective Sergeant | Detective rank in British policing above detective constable and below detective inspector, often supervising a small team of investigators. |
| Esq. | Esquire | Courtesy title written after the name of a lawyer in the United States, as in "Jane Smith, Esq.", mostly in correspondence, envelopes, signature blocks and court papers. |
| Gov. | Governor | Title of the elected chief executive of a US state or territory, abbreviated before a name in news copy, as in "Gov. |
| H.E. | His or Her Excellency | Diplomatic honorific used before the names of ambassadors, heads of state, governors-general and some other senior officials, especially on invitations, programs and… |
| HM | His or Her Majesty | Style of reigning kings and queens and queen consorts, as in HM The King. |
| Hon. | Honorable | Honorific placed before the names of judges, members of Congress, governors, mayors, ambassadors and other officials, chiefly in formal correspondence and on envelopes. |
| HRH | His or Her Royal Highness | Royal style used for members of royal families, such as the children and male-line grandchildren of a British monarch. |
| HSH | His or Her Serene Highness | Princely style used for the sovereign princes of Monaco and Liechtenstein and members of some other princely families in Europe. |
| Insp. | Inspector | Rank of inspector in British, Canadian, Australian and Indian police forces, and a title for officials who inspect buildings, food or schools. |
| Jr. | Junior | Distinguishes a son who has exactly the same name as his father, placed after the surname. |
| KBE | Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire | Confers a knighthood and the title "Sir" as the second class of the Order of the British Empire for men. |
| Kt. | Knight | Shows that a man holds a knighthood, added after the name in some reference works, particularly for knights bachelor, who belong to no order of chivalry. |
| Lt. Gov. | Lieutenant Governor | Second-ranking executive official in most US states, who succeeds the governor in case of vacancy and in many states presides over the state senate. |
| M. | Monsieur | Standard French abbreviation of Monsieur, the courtesy title for a man, used in English writing when referring to French-speaking men, especially in formal or… |
| M/s | Messrs. (used before a firm's name) | Precedes the name of a business firm in Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Sri Lankan commercial and official correspondence, as in "M/s Sharma Traders." It derives… |
| MBE | Member of the Order of the British Empire | The fifth and most commonly awarded rank of the Order of the British Empire, given for outstanding service to a community or field. |
| Messrs. | Messieurs (plural of Mr.) | Plural of Mr., used to address or refer to two or more men together, as in "Messrs. |
| Mlle. | Mademoiselle | Equivalent of Miss in French, used for an unmarried woman or girl. |
| Mme. | Madame | French courtesy title for a woman, used in English texts when referring to French-speaking women such as politicians, artists and historical figures. |
| Mmes. | Mesdames (plural of Mrs. or Madame) | Serves as the plural of Mrs. or Madame when referring to two or more married women together in formal writing. |
| Mr. | Mister | The standard courtesy title for a man, placed before his surname or full name regardless of marital status. |
| Mrs. | Missus (originally Mistress) | Traditional courtesy title for a married or widowed woman, placed before her surname or full name. |
| Ms. | Ms. (title for a woman regardless of marital status) | Marriage-neutral courtesy title for a woman, equivalent to Mr. for men. |
| Mx. | Mx. (gender-neutral courtesy title) | Gender-neutral courtesy title used in place of Mr., Ms., Mrs. or Miss, chosen by many nonbinary people and by others who prefer not to signal gender. |
| OBE | Officer of the Order of the British Empire | The fourth class of the Order of the British Empire, ranking above MBE and below CBE, awarded for a distinguished regional or national contribution. |
| Ofc. | Officer | Police title placed before an officer's name in news reports, court documents and department communications. |
| Pres. | President | Shortened form of President seen in lists, captions, letterheads, yearbooks and headlines. |
| Prof. | Professor | Academic title for a university faculty member holding the rank of professor, placed before the name in correspondence, introductions and directories. |
| Rep. | Representative | Identifies a member of the US House of Representatives or of a state house, placed before the name. |
| Rt. Hon. | Right Honourable | Honorific for members of the UK Privy Council, which includes senior government ministers and judges, as well as for earls, viscounts, barons and the lord mayors of a… |
| Sec. | Secretary | Short form of Secretary found in rosters, minutes, signature lines and headlines for a cabinet secretary, an organization's secretary or a corporate secretary. |
| Sen. | Senator | Title for a member of the US Senate or a state senate, abbreviated before a full name in news copy, as in "Sen. |
| Smt. | Shrimati | Indian honorific for a married woman, corresponding roughly to Mrs., used before her name in official documents, invitations, news reports and government communications. |
| Sr. | Senior (job level) | Marks a more experienced level of a role in job titles, as in "Sr. |
| Supt. | Superintendent | Designates the head of a school district, police division, park, building or institution, placed before the name in news reports and correspondence. |
| Tpr | Trooper | Private soldier's title in the cavalry and armoured regiments of the Royal Armoured Corps, the Household Cavalry, yeomanry units and the Special Air Service. |
| Treas. | Treasurer | Names the officer responsible for an organization's funds, records and financial reports, such as a club, union, nonprofit or local government. |
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