Q: when do you use ms. or mrs? and if the woman is divorced but still has children, do you call her miss or misses?
A: Ms. is a generic term that was created years ago so that one could properly address a woman without knowing her marital status. Mrs. is an abbreviation for mistress not misses and refers to a married woman. Miss is an unmarried woman. Ms. is generic. A woman who is divorced or a widow is still referred to as Mrs. unless she chooses to use Ms. Regardless, using Ms. will keep you from making any etiquette mistakes.