ms

See also: Appendix:Variations of "ms"

㎳ U+33B3, ㎳ SQUARE MS ← ㎲ [U+33B2] CJK Compatibility ㎴ → [U+33B4]

Translingual

Etymology 1

From m- (“milli-”) +‎ s (“second”).

Symbol

ms

2. (metrology) Symbol for millisecond, an SI unit of time equal to 10⁻³ seconds.

   Alternative form: msec (English, unofficial)

Etymology 2

Abbreviation of English Malaysian.

Symbol

ms

2. (international standards) ISO 639-1 language code for Malay.

See also

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Malay terms

English

Etymology 1

Alternative forms

• ms.

Noun

ms (plural mss)

1. Abbreviation of manuscript.

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Alternative forms

• m's

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɛmz/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛmz

Noun

ms

1. plural of m

Usage notes

• Opinions vary regarding the use of apostrophes when forming the plurals of letters of the alphabet. New Fowler’s Modern English Usage, after noting that the usage has changed, states on page 602 that “after letters an apostrophe is obligatory.” The 17th edition of The Chicago Manual of Style states in paragraph 7.15, “To aid comprehension, lowercase letters form the plural with an apostrophe and an s”. The Oxford Style Manual on page 116 advocates the use of common sense.

Anagrams

• sm., S/M, sm, S&M, Sm, S & M, SM

Egyptian

Etymology

Possibly related to Central Atlas Tamazight ⵎⵙ (ms, “to be from, be related to, be a close relative/descendant of”).

Pronunciation

 

• (reconstructed) IPA^(key): /mis/ → /mis/ → /mes/ → /mes/

• (Old Egyptian, c. 2350 BCE) IPA^(key): /mis/
• (Middle Egyptian, c. 1700 BCE) IPA^(key): /mis/
• (Amarna-period Late Egyptian, c. 1350 BCE) IPA^(key): /mes/
• (Late Egyptian, c. 800 BCE) IPA^(key): /mes/

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /mɛs/
  • Conventional anglicization: mes

Noun

 m

1. offspring, child

Inflection

Declension of ms (masculine)

singular	ms
dual	mswj
plural	msw

Derived terms

• msw-nswt

Descendants

• Demotic Egyptian: ms
  • Coptic: ⲙⲁⲥ (mas)

Noun

 m

1. calf

Inflection

Declension of ms (masculine)

singular	ms
dual	mswj
plural	msw

Descendants

• Demotic Egyptian: ms
  • Coptic: ⲙⲁⲥⲉ (mase)

Particle

 enclitic

1. surely; can connote particular persuasiveness, astonishment, reproach, or objection

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of ms  

ms	msw

Derived terms

• jwms

Verb

1. perfective of msj (“to give birth to”)

References

• James P[eter] Allen (2010), Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs, 2nd edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, pages 48, 60, 93, 125, 184, 198.

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɨˈsɨ/

Interjection

ms

1. (Internet slang, text messaging) abbreviation of mersi (“thanks”)