mevrouw
/məˈvrɑu̯/feminine
The Dutch word for madam is mevrouw.
mevrouw is a polite term of address to a woman.
Meaning: polite term of address to a woman (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural form of mevrouw is mevrouwen.
How do you pronounce it?
/məˈvrɑu̯/
Did you know?
- The word vrouw serves a double purpose in Dutch, meaning both 'woman' and 'wife'.
- The word mevrouw is a contraction of mijn ('my') and vrouw ('woman' or 'lady'), making it a linguistic sibling to the English 'milady'.
- While mevrouw is the standard polite address, calling a woman vrouw without the me- prefix can sound outdated or overly blunt in modern social settings.
Examples in context
- Er is een mevrouw hier.There is a madam here.This sentence is useful for noting the presence of a mevrouw.Tatoeba #4449458 by PaulP, translation #4450286 by Will
- Kan ik u helpen, mevrouw?May I help you, madam?This sentence is useful for offering assistance to a mevrouw.Tatoeba #661974 by Citrine, translation #10799945 by sundown
- Alstublieft mevrouw, ga uw gang!Please, madam, help yourself!This sentence is useful for telling a mevrouw to help herself.Tatoeba #405980 by Dorenda, translation #405978 by Dorenda
- Mevrouw Jansen, kunt u mij alstublieft helpen?Mrs. Jansen, could you please help me?
- Hooggeachte mevrouw van der Berg, wij nodigen u vriendelijk uit voor ons evenement.Dear Madam van der Berg, we kindly invite you to our event.
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daan is returning a lost umbrella to Lisa in a cafe.
- DaanExcuseer mij, mevrouw, is dit uw paraplu?Excuse me, madam, is this your umbrella?
- LisaOh, ja! Dank u wel, dat is de mijne.Oh, yes! Thank you, that is mine.
- DaanGraag gedaan, mevrouw.You're welcome, madam.
- LisaWat vriendelijk van u.How kind of you.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “madam” translations and entries mevrouw, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries mevrouw, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
