お嬢さん
Meaning in Englishsomeone else’s daughter, young lady
Animated kanji stroke order
Word context
What it means
What does お嬢さん mean? It is a polite term used to refer to a girl who is not the speaker's daughter, often used by adults in service contexts or when addressing a child of someone else.
Main meanings
- Polite address for a young girl who is not the speaker's daughter, common in everyday polite speech.
- When speaking to a parent, can refer to their daughter in a courteous register.
- Used by staff or professionals in service or formal interactions to address a female customer or resident.
How to use it
In formal or polite contexts, used by adults to refer to a girl who is not their own daughter, or when addressing a customer, guest, or a child of someone else; not common in casual speech among close friends; the related お嬢様 is used by staff addressing a mistress's daughter or someone of high status.
Variants and close terms
- お嬢様 — young Miss, highly formal, ojōsama
- 娘さん — daughter, neutral register, musume-san
- お嬢ちゃん — informal, affectionate variant for a young girl, ojōchan
Composition
- お prefix used to show respect when attached to nouns
- 娘 means daughter or a young woman
- さん a polite suffix after names or titles indicating respect
Etymology
お is a respectful prefix attached to nouns; 娘 means daughter or young woman; さん is a polite suffix derived from 様 (sama). The pronunciation ojōsan results from combining these elements.
Word class
noun (honorific compound)