Browse by situation
Forms of Address
Titles and honorifics have their own rules, separate from ordinary envelope addressing. These pages cover how to write the envelope line, the salutation, and the spoken address for a specific office, rank, or title.
- 01How to address allied health professionalsThe correct title for a dentist, chiropractor, optometrist, veterinarian, nurse, pharmacist, psychologist, and physical therapist.6 min
- 02How to address an ambassadorThe correct envelope line and salutation for a US ambassador, a foreign ambassador to the US, and a retired ambassador.6 min
- 03How to address Anglican and Episcopal clergyThe correct envelope line and salutation for an Archbishop, Bishop, Dean, Priest, Archdeacon, and the Very/Most/Right Reverend forms.7 min
- 04How to address an Attorney GeneralThe correct envelope line and salutation for the US Attorney General, a state Attorney General, and a deputy or assistant AG.6 min
- 05How to address the Dalai Lama and other Buddhist religious titlesThe correct form for addressing the Dalai Lama, a Geshe, and other Buddhist and Eastern religious teachers.5 min
- 06How to address a Cabinet SecretaryThe correct envelope line and salutation for a US Cabinet Secretary, and how it differs for a Deputy, Under, or Assistant Secretary.6 min
- 07How to address Catholic clergyThe correct envelope line and salutation for the Pope, a Cardinal, Archbishop, Bishop, Monsignor, Priest, and Brother or Sister.8 min
- 08How to address a commissionerThe correct envelope line and salutation for a court commissioner, a state commissioner, and a resident commissioner.5 min
- 09How to address credentialed professionalsThe correct title for a lawyer or Esquire, a professor, a licensed engineer or architect, an astronaut, and a firefighter or detective.7 min
- 10Diplomatic and foreign service forms of addressThe correct envelope line and salutation for a High Commissioner, Chief of Mission, Consul, Counselor, and other foreign service ranks below ambassador.7 min
- 11How to address other federal officialsThe correct envelope line and salutation for an Inspector General, the Postmaster General, the Sergeant at Arms, and White House staff.6 min
- 12How a name goes on a diploma, certificate, award, or plaqueThe correct full-name format for a diploma, certificate, award plaque, and how post-nominal abbreviations like PhD or Esq. are ordered.5 min
- 13How to address a governorThe correct envelope line and salutation for a state governor, a lieutenant governor, a former governor, and the governor spouse.6 min
- 14How to address a couple with two different titlesHow to combine two different professional titles on one envelope, when each spouse holds a different formal title of their own.6 min
- 15How to address a judgeThe correct envelope line and salutation for a federal, state, or local judge, plus the Chief Justice and Associate Justice forms.7 min
- 16How to address LDS and Salvation Army officialsThe correct envelope line and salutation for an LDS Bishop and a Salvation Army officer, two distinct organizational hierarchies.5 min
- 17How to address local and county officialsThe correct envelope line and salutation for selectmen, city managers, councilmembers, sheriffs, district attorneys, and other local officials.8 min
- 18How to address a magistrate or justice of the peaceThe correct envelope line and salutation for a magistrate, a justice of the peace, a town justice, and a clerk of the court.5 min
- 19How to address a mayorThe correct envelope line and salutation for a city mayor, a vice mayor, a former mayor, and how it differs for a Canadian mayor.5 min
- 20Military rank forms of addressThe correct envelope line, salutation, and abbreviation for every major US military rank, across the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard.9 min
- 21How to address military chaplains, reservists, veterans, and retired officersWhether to use military rank for a reservist, a veteran, or someone retired from active duty, plus how a military chaplain title works.6 min
- 22How a name goes on a tombstone, nametag, place card, or business cardThe right name format for a gravestone, a nametag, a place card at an event, a table tent, and a business card.5 min
- 23How to address Eastern Orthodox clergyThe correct envelope line and salutation for a Patriarch, Archbishop, Archimandrite, Bishop, Priest, Monk or Nun, and Deacon.7 min
- 24How to address the PresidentThe correct envelope line, letter salutation, and spoken address for a sitting president, a former president, and a president-elect.6 min
- 25How to address Protestant clergyThe correct envelope line and salutation for a Pastor and their spouse, a Minister, an Elder, a Deacon, and a Presbyter.6 min
- 26How to address a rabbiThe correct envelope line and salutation for a rabbi, including the joint form for a rabbi married to another rabbi.5 min
- 27How to address a US RepresentativeThe correct envelope line and salutation for a member of the US House of Representatives, including the Congressman/Congresswoman form.5 min
- 28How to address royalty and nobilityThe correct envelope line and salutation for a King or Queen, Duke, Marquess, Earl, Viscount, Baron, Knight, and Dame.8 min
- 29How to address a US SenatorThe correct envelope line and salutation for a sitting US Senator, a former senator, and how it differs for a Canadian senator.5 min
- 30How to address the Speaker of the House and Senate leadershipThe correct envelope line and salutation for the Speaker of the House, the Senate Majority/Minority Leader, and the President Pro Tempore.6 min
- 31Titles, suffixes, and modern forms of addressWhen to use Mx as a gender-neutral title, how Jr/Sr and II/III/IV work, and the real difference between Miss, Mrs, and Ms.6 min
- 32How to address the Vice PresidentThe correct envelope line and salutation for the sitting Vice President, a former Vice President, and the Vice President spouse.5 min
Questions people ask
Is a forms-of-address page the same as an envelope-addressing page?
No. A forms-of-address page covers the correct title, honorific, and salutation for a specific person or office. The mechanics of envelope layout — where the return address goes, how to fold the letter, what size envelope to use — are covered on their own dedicated pages elsewhere on the site.