abbreviations: titles with personal names

Use the following abbreviations for non-military titles preceding or following personal names:

• Dr. (Doctor)
• Esq. (Esquire)
• Hon. (Honorable)
• Jr. (Junior)
• Mr.
• Mrs.
• Ms.
• Messrs. (plural of Mr.)
• Mmes. (plural of Mrs.)
• Msgr. (Monsignor)
• Prof. (Professor)
• Rev. (Reverend)
• Rt. Hon. (Right Honorable)
• Sr. (Senior)
• St. (Saint)

Use Ms. when referring to a woman unless a preference for Mrs. has been indicated. Although not an abbreviation, Ms. is written with a period, by analogy with Mr. and Mrs. Note that Miss is not an abbreviation and does not take a period.

Do not use Mr., Mrs., Ms., Dr. or Esq. with any other abbreviated title or with an abbreviation denoting an academic degree or honour.

Write

• Dr. Roberta Bondar or Roberta Bondar, MD

not

• Ms. Roberta Bondar, MD or Dr. Roberta Bondar, MD

Write

• Mr. Paul Kelly or Paul Kelly, Esq.

not

• Mr. Paul Kelly, Esq.

Do not use the abbreviation Dr. or Rev. Dr. before the names of individuals who hold only honorary doctorates.

Saint is written out for names of persons revered as holy, but may be abbreviated in informal contexts and in lists and tables:

• Saint Catherine
• Saint Francis of Assisi
• Saint Peter
• Saint Theresa

St. and SS. (plural) are the abbreviations used.

Abbreviate professional and official titles only when they are used with both first and last names, or initials and last names:

• Gen. Lewis MacKenzie but General MacKenzie
• Dr. Irene Taguchi but Doctor Taguchi
• Prof. A. N. Chomsky but Professor Chomsky

Note that there are spaces between each period and the following initial or name.

Even when used to address someone in correspondence, Rt. Hon., Hon. and Rev. must be preceded by the:

• The Rt. Hon. Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada
• The Hon. Alfonso Gagliano, Minister of Public Works and Government Services
• The Rev. John Smith

For more information on the abbreviations Hon. and Rt. Hon., see the article Honourable, Right Honourable, Hon., Rt. Hon.

Do not abbreviate Mayor, Vice-President, Professor and Father when they are used with personal names.

© Public Services and Procurement Canada, 2024
TERMIUM Plus^®, the Government of Canada's terminology and linguistic data bank
Writing tools – Writing Tips
A product of the Translation Bureau