In today's Miss Manners column, advice columnist Judith Martin responds to a bridesmaid who questions if the bridal party ...

"Ms." is an abbreviation of the honorific “Mistress,” which was the respectable equivalent of “Mister,” to be used regardless ...

Miss Manners: I’m having a celebration of life for my son, not a funeral Letter writer wonders if people make a distinction between funerals and celebrations of life.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: We are holding a celebration of life for my 28-year-old son at an airplane hangar. I’m saying “Wear anything!” because we want it to be about celebrating his life more ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I was wondering if it’s inappropriate to show up for the repast if you have not attended the funeral. My brother-in-law by marriage passed away, and we traveled out of town ...

But Miss Manners is not going to say you should not wear white -- a mourning color in other cultures -- if it makes you feel better.

Advice Miss Manners: I have to bow out of attending a funeral, but there seems to be no good option Published: May. 23, 2025, 11:00 a.m.

Is there any proper etiquette on regifting? GENTLE READER: The etiquette on regifting is not to get caught. The likelihood in this case is too great, and not, in Miss Manners’ opinion, worth the ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: What’s the polite, kind thing to do when one must miss a funeral for reasons such as illness or injury? My aunt’s mother just passed away, and the funeral is in a few days.

Advice Miss Manners: Does a ‘celebration of life’ require etiquette adjustments from those of a funeral? Published: Mar. 24, 2025, 6:00 a.m.

Miss Manners, written by Judith Martin and her two perfect children, Nicholas Ivor Martin and Jacobina Marin, has chronicled the continuous rise and fall of American manners since 1978.

Do you make a distinction between funerals and celebrations of life, or do you believe mourning prevails regardless? I am not criticizing; beliefs are beliefs. I guess I’m questioning my actions ...