Why does an rsvp have an m

You've been invited to a wedding. Here's how to respond to the invitation with grace. Traditionally, wedding invitations are accompanied by a response card the most formal weddings may forego the response card , and you are expected to pen your reply on your own stationery—but that's an etiquette lesson for another day. The response card is exactly what its name suggests; it's how you notify the couple whether or not you will be attending their wedding, so it's important to complete it correctly and return it swiftly.

Before you complete the response card, first determine who has actually been invited to the wedding. To do this, check the inner envelope, as it will list the names of all invited guests. For instance, the outer envelope may only have listed your name, "Miss Elly May Clampett," but the inner envelope may say, "Elly May and Guest. Same goes for families: The outer envelope might only say "Mr.

Ladd Drummond," but if the kids have been included too, the inner envelope will tip you off, as it will say, "Ladd and Ree, Alex, Paige, Bryce and Todd. John and Mrs. Jane Doe. You should always send an RSVP back, even if you cannot make it. Here you will put the number attending. Not sure who is invited? That brings me to my next point. Another helpful piece of advice is how to know who is invited. If your wedding invitation is addressed to your name, you alone are invited.

If your wedding invitation is addressed to your name with a guest, then you were given a plus one. If the wedding invitation is addressed to you and your spouse, but not your children, then it is a kid-free party…enjoy your night away!

The last thing on the response card will likely be a meal selection. Initial next to your meal of choice to let the couple know who is ordering what. They will then pass on this information to their caterer, so the clearer the handwriting, the better. Putting a stamp on the return envelope will make it even easier for your guests to stick it in the mail quickly…which is ideally what you will want to happen!

Thankfully, your guests will likely do a quick internet search and figure it out. The "M" in the reply card is meant to signify the first letter of your title - the choices are Mr. David Smith on that line. If it is addressed to your single niece, she would write "M"iss Jessica Smith on that line. So, hopefully this clears things up. Of course, things get confusing if you are inviting doctors or military personnel to your wedding.

Their official titles aren't in that list I mentioned above. Generally they will have to fit themselves into that format or cross it out. Now, in modern times couples are not as keen on this tradition.

Many people are not fans of using titles these days, especially between grownups. They want a wedding that is more casual and more in line with their personalities. So what are some alternatives?

We've seen people replace the "M" with "Name s ". This is probably the best alternative. If you leave it blank and just have a line to fill out, we suspect that your guests will be even more confused about filling it in and they may not fill out anything at all on that line.

Others suggest having a blank space where you can write in the invited guests on the RSVP card before you send them out. This does help clarify who has been invited if you don't have an outer envelope. But you can also add that information in the mailing address on the invitation envelopes. So it's not necessary. The problem with writing in the names is that you may not end up knowing precisely who is and who is not coming to the wedding. If the guests write in the names themselves, then you will know.

RSVP card wording is somewhat inelegant, as you can never really ensure you'll get the super accurate information back that you want. Back in days long past, RSVP cards were not sent out, as guests were expected, by courtesy, to respond on their own These days, modern couples are considering other options to mailed RSVP cards.

Some couples are having people RSVP by email or phone.