Chinese

Noun

小姐

1. (Beginning Mandarin) Miss (a term of address for a young or unmarried woman)

   王小姐來了。 / 王小姐来了。  ―  Wáng xiǎojiě lái le.  ―  Miss Wang is here.

2. a young lady
3. (slang) barmaid, prostitute

Usage notes

In china, 小姐 is less used to mean Miss because the meaning prostitute took over the original meaning, 女士 (nǚshì) is used instead. Can still use 小姐 as a title (see usage example). Do not use 小姐 to call a waitress (Use neuter word 服務員／服务员 (fúwùyuán)). The definition may revert somewhat in the distant future (becoming similar to the word 姑娘 (gūniang)).

Synonyms

• 女士 (nǚshì, “lady, miss”)

Derived terms

See also

• 太太 (tàitai, “madame, wife”)
• 夫人 (fūrén, “madame”)
• 先生 (xiānshēng, “mister”)