How to Address a Fiancé or Fiancée on an Invitation?

I am in a dilemma: I need to send an invitation to a gentleman and his fiancée; I love them both dearly and they already live together so I can mail one invitation. Can you help me please?
—-—-—-– Jocelyn J

Dear Jocelyn J:

Here are some options, but be sure to read the NOTE that follows and the next post too.

—-The normal form to use on the envelope is:
——–Mr. Henry Smith
—-—-Ms. Nancy Wilson
—-—-(Address)

—-Or, if you know she uses ‘MISS’
—-—-Mr. Henry Smith
—-—-Miss Nancy Wilson
—-—-(Address)

NOTE: Etiquette books put an ‘and’ between names if they are married …. no ‘and’ if they are not.  Since they are unmarried, I showed it without an ‘and’.

– Robert Hickey  How to address a Fiancé or Fiancée

Related Posts:
——–—Couples: Private Citizens
——–—Couples: Christian Clergy
——–—Couples: Rabbis
——–—Couples: Military
——–—Couples: U.S. Officials
——–—Couples: Same Sex

Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”

How to Address an Engaged Couple?

How would you address an invitation’s envelope to a pastor and his fiancée?

– DM   How to Address a Fiancé or Fiancée

Dear DM:

You don’t tell me a lot about the details, but here are some traditional rules for issuing invitations to pairs of people:

#1) Issue an individual invitation to each. This works best when they have different mailing addresses.

#2) Issue an invitation to one person and invite that person to bring a guest. If you don’t know his fiancée this is probably best. Tell the pastor to get you the name of his fiancée so you can have their name in advance for all the standard reasons.

#3) Issue a joint invitation to the pair because they present themselves as a couple. This works best when you know they have the same mailing address.

#4) If you put an ‘and’ in front of the second name it implies they are married. So in this case just list the names without an ‘and’ between them.

—-Seems like you want to issue them a single invitation. Here is the formula:
—-—-Name of the intended guest on the first line
—-—-Name of their guest on a second line

—-In your case the formula will be:
—-—-His full name on the first line
—-—-Her full name on a second line

—-Formally:
—-—-The Reverend (Full Name)
—-—-Ms. (Full Name)
—-—-(Address)

—-Less formally
—-—-Pastor (Full Name)
—-—-Ms. (Full Name)
——–(Address)

– Robert Hickey How to Address a Fiancé or Fiancée

Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”

When Should You Use the Forms on this Page?

You can use these forms of address for any mode of communication: addressing a letter, invitation, card or Email. (If there are differences between the official and social forms of address, I will have mentioned the different forms.)  The form noted in the salutation is the same form you say when you say their name in conversation or when you greet them.
___What I don’t cover on this site are many things I do cover in my book: all the rules of forms of address, about names, international titles, precedence, complimentary closes, details on invitations, place cards, all sorts of introductions, etc. I hope you’ll get a copy of the book if you’d like the further detail.

Not Finding Your Answer?

—-#1)  At right on desktops, at the bottom of every page on tablets and phones, is a list of all the offices, officials & topics covered on the site.

—-#2)  If you don’t see the official you seek included or your question answered send me an e-mail. I am pretty fast at sending a reply: usually the next day or so (unless I am traveling.)  Note: I don’t have mailing or Email addresses for any of the officials and I don’t keep track of offices that exist only in history books.

—-#3)  If I think your question is of interest to others, Sometimes I post the question  – but always change all the specifics.

— Robert Hickey 

Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”

Recommended Resources:  The Protocol School of Washington (PSOW) and Protocol and Diplomacy International – Protocol Officers Association (PDI-POA)    For more information see the Protocol Resources page.