ladies and gentlemen

English

Noun

1. Used to address an audience.
   • 1996, The Cambridge History of American Literature, volume 8, Poetry and criticism, 1940-1995 (edited by Sacvan Bercovitch), page 408:

     […] a Master of Ceremonies' words "Ladies and gentlemen" […] interpellates those being addressed as an audience, and one that is differentiated by gender.

2. (rare and euphemistic) Public toilets: a ladies' room and a gentlemen's room.
   • 1941, Joyce Cary, Herself Surprised, Ch. xliv, p. 108:

     There are quays there and lamps and some squares of grass; a ladies and gentlemen, and a cinema.

Usage notes

When addressing an audience of all one gender, a speaker would typically use ladies (to women) or gentlemen (to men) instead. Infrequently, speakers may extend the form if other groups are in the audience; for example, "ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls!".

Translations

phrase used to address an audience of men and women

• Arabic: سَيِّدَاتِي وَسَادَتِي (sayyidātī wa-sādatī)
• Armenian: տիկնայք եւ պարոնայք (tiknaykʻ ew paronaykʻ)
• Belarusian: па́нства pl (pánstva), шано́ўнае спада́рства n pl (šanóŭnaje spadárstva), да́мы і спада́ры (dámy i spadáry), па́ні і пано́ве (páni i panóvje)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 女士們，先生們／女士们，先生们, 女士们，先生们 (nǚshìmen, xiānshengmen), (everyone, ladies and gentlemen) 各位 (zh) (gèwèi), 各位來賓／各位来宾 (gèwèi láibīn), 各位来宾 (gèwèi láibīn)

• Czech: dámy a pánové
• Danish: mine damer og herrer
• Dutch: dames en heren (nl)
• Esperanto: gesinjoroj
• Finnish: hyvät naiset ja herrat (fi)
• French: Mesdames et Messieurs (fr)
• German: Damen und Herren pl, meine Damen und Herren pl, (ironic) Herrschaften (de) f pl
• Greek: κυρίες και κύριοι (kyríes kai kýrioi)
• Hebrew: גבירותי ורבותי (gvirotay verabotay)
• Hungarian: hölgyeim és uraim
• Icelandic: dömur mínar og herrar
• Indonesian: tuan-tuan dan nyonya-nyonya
• Irish: a dhaoine uaisle m pl
• Italian: signore e signori
• Japanese: 御列席の皆様 (ごれっせきのみなさま, go-resseki no minasama), 御来場の皆様 (ごらいじょうのみなさま, go-raijō no minasama), 皆様 (みなさま, minasama)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Korean: 여러분 (ko) (yeoreobun), 신사숙녀 여러분 (sinsasungnyeo yeoreobun)
• Lithuanian: dāmas un kungi
• Malay: tuan-tuan dan puan-puan
• Mongolian: ноёд хатагтай нар аа (nojod xatagtaj nar aa)
• Navajo: shidineʼé, shikʼéí dóó shidineʼé, átaháásiiłóó, hastóí dóó sáanii
• Norwegian: mine damer og herrer
• Persian: خانم‌ها و آقایان (xânom-hâ va âqâyân)
• Polish: panie i panowie
• Portuguese: senhoras e senhores
• Russian: господа́ (ru) pl (gospodá), да́мы и господа́ (ru) (dámy i gospodá)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: даме и господо

  Roman: dame i gospodo

• Slovak: dámy a páni
• Spanish: señoras y señores, damas y caballeros
• Swedish: mina damer och herrar
• Turkish: bayanlar ve baylar, bayanlar baylar
• Ukrainian: па́нство pl (pánstvo), па́ні й пано́ве (páni j panóve)

See also

• Appendix:Special uses of possessives in English