According to sir, madam or moderator administrator + name

[sumon.]

Hi everyone.
1 # According to sir Rover, It is nor grammatical.
2# According to teacher Raymott, It appears to be a small inconsistency.
3# According to moderator 5jj , context is always important.
4# According to madam Emsr2d2, "this" is sometimes used in a rather strange way.
5# Accourding to administrator Tdol , Insulting people is not a good way of getting them to help you.
6# According to English native speaker Parser, one usually does not use a comma after the word "so".
Are the sentences above used naturally, modestly and accurately?
Actually I want to know how a native speaker refers to a name.
Thank you......

 

[5jj]

We simply use the name. If their job/role or some other detail is relevant, we can mention in in apposition:

According to Raymott, a teacher, ...
According to TheParser, a native speaker of English, ...

If gender is relevant, then I would use a non-defining relative clause:

According to emsr2d2, who is female, ...

 

[sumon.]

According to emsr2d2, who is female,

According to my first language, to use who is female or male like that is a little bit strange.
Do you use like that only before a nickname?

 

[TheParser]

According to sir Rover, It is nor grammatical.

According to moderator 5jj , context is always important.
According to madam Emsr2d2, "this" is sometimes used in a rather strange way.
Accourding to administrator Tdol , Insulting people is not a good way of getting them to help you.

Are the sentences above used naturally, modestly and accurately?
Actually I want to know how a native speaker refers to a name.

***** NOT A TEACHER *****


(1) I know how you feel. In many cultures (maybe in yours?) people like to be

addressed by titles. I remember that one woman who came here from country X

was angry all her life because her boss in her country had forced her to always address him as "Doctor."

(2) Here in the United States, many people do not use titles because they think that

since everyone is "equal," why should they have to use a title? For example, in our

newspapers, the president is often referred to only by his last name. In fact, many

newspapers don't always use "Mr." or "Mrs." For example, if there's a story about

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, she will often be referred to as "Clinton." (How ugly and rude!)

(3) I used to address Moderator Smith, or Key Member Jones, or Mr. Carpenter, but

some complained and insisted on being addressed without titles, so now I just refer to

them by their user names.

(4) I personally agree with you: it is always nice to use a title, but in the United



States, it is NOT considered "natural." To be very honest, people would laugh if you

addressed a letter to "Sir Rover." That is a title in England for people who have been given a

special honor by the Queen. And "Madam Emsr" is equally "wrong." And definitely

do not write "Moderator 5jj"!!! If you write Administrator Tdol, that is also not a natural

way to address the editor. (5jj in his post above has told you the accepted ways to

refer to members.)

(5) Of course, in conversation, it's still very polite to reply to someone with "Yes, sir"

or "Yes, ma'am." But do NOT be surprised if some do not like those answers, either.

Some people are offended. Why? Because they think that you think that they are

OLD!

 

[5jj]

(5) Of course, in conversation, it's still very polite to reply to someone with "Yes, sir" or "Yes, ma'am."

This is true in Britain only in certain contexts. In normal, everyday conversation, I would know that anybody who addressed me as 'sir' was not British.

 

[Tdol]

I use Excuse me sir/madam if I want to speak to a stranger, and sir/madam in other similar contexts, though I believe that puts me in the minority in BrE, but I like a degree of formal politeness when talking to strangers.

 

[konungursvia]

According to my first language, to use who is female or male like that is a little bit strange.
Do you use like that only before a nickname?

I agree, and would probably hesitate to call a human being "female" or "male" unless I was reading an identity card aloud.

 

[5jj]

I agree, and would probably hesitate to call a human being "female" or "male" unless I was reading an identity card aloud.

In my example, I used 'female' because I am not sure these days whether the person I am talking about is unhappy with 'woman' or 'lady'. I have in my time been rebuked some people of that gender for using the first of these words, and by others for using the second. As a result, I have found 'female', in the appropriate context, relatively safe. Until today, that is.

 

[5jj]

I use Excuse me sir/madam if I want to speak to a stranger, and sir/madam in other similar contexts, though I believe that puts me in the minority in BrE, but I like a degree of formal politeness when talking to strangers.

This is true in Britain only in certain contexts. In normal, everyday conversation, I would know that anybody except Tdol ;-)who addressed me as 'sir' was not British.

5

 

[emsr2d2]

I would be perfectly happy for someone to refer to me as "female" if such reference were necessary. I don't have a particular problem with "girl", "woman" or "lady", but at least saying "female" removes any potential connotations. I admit that the first time anyone referred to me as "a lady" was when I was about 25 and I looked around the room to see who they were talking about. At that age, I felt that calling me a lady made me feel very old! ;-)

As far as the original question is concerned, it has been stated on this forum over and over again that the best thing to do is to refer to each other simply by our usernames. I would not address the OP as "Learner Sumon", nor do I wish to be referred to as "Teacher emsr2d2" etc.

 

[Barb_D]

I have a friend who was a naval officer (as was I) but when we were midshipmen (officers in training), there were some people who were confused about how to address female midshipmen.

She said "It's very simple. If it's in the morning, you say, 'Good morning, Miss [Smith] and may I say you look lovely today.' And if it's in the afternoon, you say, 'Good afternoon, Miss [Smith], and may I say you look radiant today.' And if it's in the evening you say, 'Good evening, Miss Smith, and may I buy you an adult beverage?'"

 

[symaa]

It's very useful to know about cultural differences so as to avoid embarrassing situations;-).

So, how would you address to a stranger ''young man/ girl''?

And is the title'' madam'' used also to adress to unmarried woman? Because in Oxford dictionary ''Madam'' is used when speaking or writing to a woman in a formal or business situation.


Thank you in advance, and sorry if I used such a title that seem unnatural to you.

 

[emsr2d2]

It's very useful to know about cultural differences so as to avoid embarrassing situations;-).

So, how would you address to a stranger ''young man/ girl''?

And is the title'' madam'' used also to adress to unmarried woman? Because in Oxford dictionary ''Madam'' is used when speaking or writing to a woman in a formal or business situation.


Thank you in advance, and sorry if I used such a title that seem unnatural to you.

In BrE, we can say "Madam" to a woman whose name we don't know and who we wish to address in a fairly formal way. It is of course used in letters in "Dear Sir/Madam".

I currently work part-time in a shop. Personally, I would never address any of the customers as "Sir" or "Madam" but it's a fairly laid-back shop with a relaxed approach. I wouldn't "address" them as anything. When they enter the shop, I say "Hello" and when the leave I say "Thank you. Bye". In more formal (personally, I would say posh) shops, I have been addressed as "Madam".

I would never address anyone as "Young man/girl" when speaking directly to them. However, I think older people when they meet a young child might say "Hello, young man" or "Hello, young lady".

 

[5jj]

Most British people do not normally use any form of address to a stranger. though words such as 'mate' can be heard among people considered by some to be not well-educated. I have used 'sir' as a pupil, as a shop assistant and in the services. I have been addressed as 'sir' by pupils, shop assistants, wait staff, junior ranks in the services, beggars, customs officials* and police officers*. That's all.

*These two groups are experts at using sir with apparent respect.

 

[konungursvia]

I have a friend who was a naval officer (as was I) but when we were midshipmen (officers in training), there were some people who were confused about how to address female midshipmen.

She said "It's very simple. If it's in the morning, you say, 'Good morning, Miss [Smith] and may I say you look lovely today.' And if it's in the afternoon, you say, 'Good afternoon, Miss [Smith], and may I say you look radiant today.' And if it's in the evening you say, 'Good evening, Miss Smith, and may I buy you an adult beverage?'"

I'm wondering if you're being playful in this answer? Many people here would avoid the 1950s/1960s style beauty-oriented compliments in a professional situation, particularly the military, where men and women work together side-by-side.

Just saying.

 

[Rover_KE]

I use Excuse me sir/madam if I want to speak to a stranger, and sir/madam in other similar contexts, though I believe that puts me in the minority in BrE, but I like a degree of formal politeness when talking to strangers.

I'm with you, Tdol, except that I use ma'am in the American style and also miss for young women.

Having spent a total of two years out of the last seven in the USA, I'm a great admirer of this practice and would like to see it spread over here.

I get no funny looks and when I say 'Thank you, miss' to teenage girls who serve me in coffee shops and on market stalls many of them seem quite pleased.

Rover

 

[Barb_D]

Midshipmen are in college together. Six days a week we were just classmates. One day a week, we were "military." My story is 100% true, and the school in question was Tulane. You should have heard some of her other stories.

 

[symaa]

In BrE, we can say "Madam" to a woman whose name we don't know and who we wish to address in a fairly formal way. It is of course used in letters in "Dear Sir/Madam".

I currently work part-time in a shop. Personally, I would never address any of the customers as "Sir" or "Madam" but it's a fairly laid-back shop with a relaxed approach. I wouldn't "address" them as anything. When they enter the shop, I say "Hello" and when the leave I say "Thank you. Bye". In more formal (personally, I would say posh) shops, I have been addressed as "Madam".

I would never address anyone as "Young man/girl" when speaking directly to them. However, I think older people when they meet a young child might say "Hello, young man" or "Hello, young lady".

Most British people do not normally use any form of address to a stranger. though words such as 'mate' can be heard among people considered by some to be not well-educated. I have used 'sir' as a pupil, as a shop assistant and in the services. I have been addressed as 'sir' by pupils, shop assistants, wait staff, junior ranks in the services, beggars, customs officials* and police officers*. That's all.

*These two groups are experts at using sir with apparent respect.

Ok, thank you for your replies.
I wonder how can I call, for example, a tourist (a boy or a girl) who is young as well?

Thank you.

 

[Barb_D]

I've certainly seen store clerks address my daughters as "young lady."

"Are you all set there, young lady?"

In that context, "young lady" or "young man" would work.

 

[symaa]

Thank you so much for your answer.

Kind regards,