name
Meaning 1
A surname.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
mister
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
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mĭsʹ-tər
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/ˈmɪstəɹ/
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UK: [ˈmɪstə(ɹ)]
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US: [ˈmɪstɚ]
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US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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rhymes with -ɪstə(ɹ)
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homophone: Mr.
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homophone: mister
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Received-Pronunciation: /ˈmɪstə/
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Received-Pronunciation: [ˈmɪstə]
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US: /ˈmɪstəɹ/
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homophone: Mister
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CMU ARPABET: M IH1 S T ER0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
noun
Meaning 2
Alternative spelling of Mister, especially when used as a form of address without a name.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- You may sit here, mister.
- You keep away from my wife, mister.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 3
A man.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- There are too many misters and not enough sisters up in this club tonight, for my taste.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 4
Someone's business or function; an occupation, employment, trade.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 5
A kind, type of.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: archaic, dialectal
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 6
Need (of something).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 7
Necessity; the necessary time.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 8
A device that makes or sprays mist.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- Odessa D. uses a mister Sunday to fight the 106-degree heat at a NASCAR race in Fontana, California.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 9
A general title of respect for an adult male.
With a surname.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- This is Mister Smith, assistant to the President.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 10
A general title of respect for an adult male.
With a full name.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- This is Mister James Smith, assistant to the President.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 11
A general title of respect for an adult male.
With a first name only.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Qualifier: regional or dated subservient
Examples
- Will Mister Robert be staying for dinner?
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 12
An official form of address to a male president of a nation.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- Mister President
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 13
A formal address to any male official of an organization.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- Mister Secretary
- Mister Treasurer
- Mister Attorney
- Mister Justice
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 14
An official title of a military man, usually anyone below rank of captain.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 15
A male warrant officer or cadet in the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 16
An informal title that is used to create a nickname, placeholder name, or other moniker for a male.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- Mister Suave
- He's Mister Baseball around here.
- Hey, Mister magenta-shirt over there looks a lot like your cousin Bill.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 17
A title used to designate the (male) winner of certain kinds of competition.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
- The Mister Universe finals will be held in Los Angeles.
- And now I can reveal that this year's Mister Personality is ... Stanley Cheeseworth!
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 18
Used by itself as a familiar term of address to a man whose name is unknown, or sometimes even if the name is known.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: colloquial
Qualifier: sometimes hostile; sometimes written 'mister'; sometimes hostile; sometimes written 'mister'
Examples
- 'Scuse me Mister, do you have the time?
- Now you listen to me, Mister. If I see you round here again, there'll be trouble.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 19
To address by the title of "mister".
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: ambitransitive
Examples
- 1837-39, Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist “Hush! hush! Mr. Sikes,” said the Jew, trembling; “don’t speak so loud!” “None of your mistering,” replied the ruffian; “you always mean mischief when you come that. You know my name: out with it! I shan’t disgrace it when the time comes.”
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 20
To be necessary; to matter.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: impersonal, obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 21
a form of address for a man
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: Mr, Mr.
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: title, title of respect, form of address
History
Etymology
See mister.
Unaccented variant of master, attested since the 15th century.
From Middle English mister, myster, from Anglo-Norman mester, meister (et al.), from Latin misterium, a medieval conflation of Latin ministerium (“ministry”) with Latin mysterium (“mystery”). Doublet of métier.
mist + -er
Across languages
Translations
130 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Albanian: zotëri — title of adult male
- Western Apache: hastiin — title of adult male
- Arabic: سَيِّد (sayyid) — title of adult male
- Arabic: أُسْتَاذ (ʔustāḏ) — title of adult male
- Arabic: بَاشَا (bāšā) — title of adult male
- Arabic: جَنَاب (janāb) — title of adult male
- Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܡܝܲܩܪܵܐ (myaqrā) — title of adult male
- Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܡܵܪܝ (mār) — title of adult male
- Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܪܲܒܝܼ (rabbī) — title of adult male
- Armenian: պարոն (paron) — title of adult male
- Aromanian: domnu — title of adult male
- Azerbaijani: cənab — title of adult male
- Azerbaijani: bəy — title of adult male
- Basque: jaun — title of adult male
- Belarusian: пан (pan) — title of adult male
- Belarusian: па́не (pánje) — title of adult male
- Belarusian: спада́р (spadár) — title of adult male
- Belarusian: спада́ру (spadáru) — title of adult male
- Bulgarian: господи́н (gospodín) — title of adult male
- Carpathian Rusyn: пан (pan) — title of adult male
- Catalan: senyor — title of adult male
- Chamicuro: chmes̈hona — title of adult male
- Chinese Cantonese: 先生 (sin1 saang1) — title of adult male
- Chinese Mandarin: 先生 (xiānsheng) — title of adult male
- Czech: pán — title of adult male
- Czech: pane — title of adult male
- Dalmatian: sinaur — title of adult male
- Dalmatian: sinar — title of adult male
- Dutch: meneer — title of adult male
- Erzya: чиряз (čiŕaz) — title of adult male
- Esperanto: Sinjoro — title of adult male
- Estonian: härra — title of adult male
- Finnish: herra — title of adult male
- French: monsieur — title of adult male
- Friulian: missâr — title of adult male
- Friulian: signôr — title of adult male
- Georgian: ბატონი (baṭoni) — title of adult male
- Georgian: ბატონო (baṭono) — title of adult male
- German: Herr — title of adult male
- Greek: κύριος (kýrios) — title of adult male
- Haitian Creole: konpè — title of adult male
- Haitian Creole: mesye — title of adult male
- Hausa: malam — title of adult male
- Hawaiian: mika — title of adult male
- Hebrew: מַר (mar) — title of adult male
- Hebrew: ׳הא — title of adult male
- Hindi: श्री (śrī) — title of adult male
- Hindi: श्रीमान (śrīmān) — title of adult male
- Hindi: जी (jī) — title of adult male
- Hindi: साहिब (sāhib) — title of adult male
- Hindi: साहब (sāhab) — title of adult male
- Hungarian: úr — title of adult male
- Icelandic: herra — title of adult male
- Igbo: Maàzị — title of adult male
- Indonesian: tuan — title of adult male
- Indonesian: bapak — title of adult male
- Interlingua: senior — title of adult male
- Italian: signore — title of adult male
- Japanese: さん (san) — title of adult male
- Japanese: 様 (sama) — title of adult male
- Japanese: 氏 (shi) — title of adult male
- Kannada: ಶ್ರೀ (śrī) — title of adult male
- Kazakh: мырза (myrza) — title of adult male
- Korean: -씨 (-ssi) — title of adult male
- Korean: -님 (-nim) — title of adult male
- Korean: 미스터 (miseuteo) — title of adult male
- Kyrgyz: мырза (mırza) — title of adult male
- Kyrgyz: господин (gospodin) — title of adult male
- Latin: dominus — title of adult male
- Macedonian: господин (gospodin) — title of adult male
- Malay: انچيق — title of adult male
- Malay: توان — title of adult male
- Malay: encik — title of adult male
- Malay: tuan — title of adult male
- Malayalam: ശ്രീ (śrī) — title of adult male
- Marathi: श्रीयुत (śrīyut) — title of adult male
- Mongolian: ноён (nojon) — title of adult male
- Navajo: hastiin — title of adult male
- Norwegian Bokmål: herre — title of adult male
- Occitan: sénher — title of adult male
- Pannonian Rusyn: пан (pan) — title of adult male
- Iranian Persian: آقا (âġâ) — title of adult male
- Iranian Persian: آغا (âġâ) — title of adult male
- Iranian Persian: مِهْتَر (mehtar) — title of adult male
- Iranian Persian: بُزُرْگ (bozorg) — title of adult male
- Iranian Persian: سِیِّد (seyyed) — title of adult male
- Iranian Persian: خواجِه (xâje) — title of adult male
- Iranian Persian: جِناب (jenâb) — title of adult male
- Polish: pan — title of adult male
- Polish: panie — title of adult male
- Portuguese: senhor — title of adult male
- Quechua: tata — title of adult male
- Romanian: domn — title of adult male
- Russian: господи́н (gospodín) — title of adult male
- Sardinian: sannori — title of adult male
- Sardinian: segnore — title of adult male
- Sardinian: segnori — title of adult male
- Sardinian: sennore — title of adult male
- Scottish Gaelic: Maighstir — title of adult male
- Serbo-Croatian: госпо̀дин — title of adult male
- Serbo-Croatian: gospòdin — title of adult male
- Slovak: pán — title of adult male
- Slovak: pane — title of adult male
- Slovene: gospod — title of adult male
- Lower Sorbian: kněz — title of adult male
- Spanish: señor — title of adult male
- Swahili: bwana — title of adult male
- Swedish: herr — title of adult male
- Tagalog: ginoong — title of adult male
- Tajik: оғо (oġo) — title of adult male
- Tajik: ҷаноб (janob) — title of adult male
- Tamil: திரு (tiru) — title of adult male
- Tamil: ஐயா (aiyā) — title of adult male
- Tamil: சார் (cār) — title of adult male
- Tatar: әфәнде (äfände) — title of adult male
- Telugu: శ్రీ (śrī) — title of adult male
- Thai: นาย (naai) — title of adult male
- Turkish: bay — title of adult male
- Turkish: sayın — title of adult male
- Turkmen: jenap — title of adult male
- Ukrainian: пан (pan) — title of adult male
- Ukrainian: па́не (páne) — title of adult male
- Urdu: صاحِب (sāhib) — title of adult male
- Uyghur: جاناپ (janap) — title of adult male
- Uzbek: janob — title of adult male
- Welsh: mistar — title of adult male
- Yiddish: אדוני (adoyni) — title of adult male
- Yiddish: אדון (adoyn) — title of adult male
- Yiddish: הער (her) — title of adult male
- Yoruba: Ọ̀gbẹ́ni — title of adult male
Real reading context