distinction is important because many official documents use the person's maiden, or legal or true surname, rather than their usage name. In some cases, people change their real name to their stage name, but truly changing one's last name, as opposed to adopting a usage name, is quite complex. Styles and forms of address Madame, Mademoiselle, Monsieur In normal polite usage, a person's name is usually preceded by: Monsieur, for a male (etymologically, monsieur means "my lord", cf. English "sir"); pronounced ; plural: messieurs, pronounced ; abbreviation: singular M.; plural: MM.. The singular form Mr is very often found, but is considered incorrect by purists, although it appears (together with its rare plural form Mrs) in some dictionaries. Madame, for a married female (etymologically, madame means "my lady", cf. English "dame"); pronounced ; plural: mesdames, pronounced ; abbreviation: Mme; plural: Mmes. Madame must also be used when one does not know whether the addressed woman is married or not, and when one does not know whether the addressed woman may consider the use of Mademoiselle as discriminating or disrespectful. Mademoiselle, for an unmarried female (etymologically, mademoiselle means "my damsel", cf. English "damsel"); pronounced ; plural: mesdemoiselles, pronounced ; abbreviation: Mlle or Mle; plural: Mlles or Mles. This form of address is informal and is now tending to be less used in favour of madame by some groups such as feminist movements because they consider the usage to be discriminating and disrespectful. However, one tendency that remains fairly common is the addressing of young-looking females mademoiselle, and older females madame. Actresses are usually always styled mademoiselle, especially in film or theatre credits, regardless of their age or personal situation; one would thus read mademoiselle Deneuve est habillée par Soandso. Since 2013, French administration does not use the term mademoiselle anymore for its documents in favour of madame regardless of the status and the age of the woman addressed. Mondamoiseau is an archaic term historically used for a gentleman that had not yet reached the status of chevalier, and was used in a similar fashion as the modern mademoiselle; plural: mesdemoiseaux. The term has not been in common use since the 17th century, but it can be found in works of classic French literature, such as Molière's L'Avare. Maître, for males and females (etymologically, maître means "master"); this title is used by lawyers and few other juridical professions, while carrying out their