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Today we’ll have a look at a word which every visitor to France must know: Monsieur, which means both “sir” and “mister” (Mr.). Specifically, we’ll look at the pronunciation which confuses many students. The pronunciation is: [məsjø]. The mon sounds like “mih” and the final r is barely pronounced.
Monsieur
Sir, Mister, Mr.
Monsieur Pronunciation & Meaning
Word origin
The Modern French monsieur (sir, mister) comes from Middle French mon sieur, meaning “my lord”. This had been a title used in the royal court. Sieur comes from from the Old French sire, which is related to sir and sire in English.
Example sentences
Excusez-moi, monsieur. Où est la gare, s’il vous plaît ?
Excuse me, sir. Where is the train station, please?
Monsieur in French can be abbreviated as M. Hence, M. DuPont.
Monsieur DuPont arrive en France demain.
Mr. DuPont is arriving in France tomorrow.
In French, the plural of monsieur is messieurs, literally “my sirs”.
Mesdames et messieurs, puis-j‘avoir votre attention s’il vous plaît ?
Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please?
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