this post was submitted on 23 Mar 2026
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I was raised to address strangers and those I wish to show social deference to as "Sir" or "Ma'am". It's a difficult habit to break, as it is deeply engrained.

What is an equivalent gender neutral honorific that is relatively common in English? If I can't break the habit I'd rather have a substitute word to use instead of an awkward pause in the middle of addressing someone

I'd just use Google to ask but I'd rather ask the people directly rather than an AI generated answer based off of Reddit threads

ETA: I suppose if Yessir and Yes'm work, Yesn't could too? Mostly joking… but maybe… 🤔

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[–] Chippys_mittens@lemmy.world 8 points 16 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago)

Yeah this is a perfect example of why it doesn't matter how polite you try to be. Someone is going to be bothered by ANY language at some point. So long as you have good intentions, you've satisfied your end of the interaction.