Skip to content

doña

doña (Spanish honorific for a woman)

noun DOH-nyah Rare

Origin: from Spanish doña, honorific from Latin domina (lady)

Usage Note

Doña is a Spanish honorific used before a woman's first name to indicate respect or social standing, equivalent to 'Madam' or 'Lady.' It appears in French texts when referring to Spanish-speaking or Latin American women of status. It is not a French-native word and is used as a borrowing. The male equivalent is don.

Examples

"Doña Carmen était respectée de tous."

Natural Translation

Doña Carmen was respected by everyone.

Free starter pack

Building your French vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common French words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Explore French by topic