Née is a French word used in English to show a woman's last name before she got married. If you read that “Senator Maria Johnson, née Rodriguez” will speak at an event, it means her last name was Rodriguez before she married someone with the last name Johnson.

You'll see née most often in formal writing like newspaper articles, biographies, or wedding announcements. It helps readers understand a woman's family background or connect her to earlier parts of her life when she had a different name. For example, if you're reading about an accomplished scientist, the text might say “Dr. Sarah Chen, née Park” so you know that earlier articles about researcher Sarah Park are about the same person.

The word literally means “born” in French, referring to the name someone was born with. While it's traditionally used only for women (since historically women changed their names when they married and men didn't), you might occasionally see its male equivalent, né, though this is much rarer in English writing.

Today, not all women change their names when they marry, and some couples choose other arrangements, but née remains useful for clarifying someone's previous name when needed.