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In the English language, an honorific is a form of address conveying esteem, courtesy or respect. These can be titles prefixing a person's name, e.g.: Mr, Mrs, Miss, Ms, Mx, Sir, Dame, Dr, Cllr, Lady, or Lord, or other titles or positions that can appear as a form of address without the person's name, as in Mr President, General, Captain, Father, Doctor, or Earl.
Thus ministers are correctly addressed as, for example, Mr Smith or Mrs Smith unless they have a higher degree or academic appointment e.g. Dr Smith or Prof. Smith. It is 'infra dig' to use the style 'Rev' and even the use of 'the Rev Mr' requires sensitivity to official style. Position. On envelopes.
The Very Reverend (abbreviation The Very Rev.), oral address Mr./Madam Dean or Mr./Madam Provost, as appropriate, or Very Reverend Sir/Madam – Anglican deans and provosts of cathedrals, the deans of Westminster Abbey and St George's Chapel, Windsor, and, for historical reasons, a few parish priests, such as the Dean of Bocking.
Dear Sir or Madam (If the gender of the reader is unknown). To Whom It May Concern (If the writer wishes to exclude the gender of the reader from the salutation and/or to convey that the reader should forward the copy to one more suited to receive or respond appropriately). Dear Sir (If the reader is male). Dear Madam (If the reader is female).
Honorific. An honorific is a title that conveys esteem, courtesy, or respect for position or rank when used in addressing or referring to a person. Sometimes, the term "honorific" is used in a more specific sense to refer to an honorary academic title. It is also often conflated with systems of honorific speech in linguistics, which are ...
Sir. Sir is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French " Sieur " (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as part of " Monsieur ", with the equivalent "My Lord" in English.
An extensive system of honorifics used to be in place in the Netherlands. In a more formal setting it still is. De weledele heer/vrouwe 'the honourable lord/lady' is used for the genteel bourgeoisie. The middle classes are instead addressed with De heer/mevrouw 'sir/madam', which is the equivalent of Mr/Ms in English.
Not to be confused with malediction. A valediction (derivation from Latin vale dicere, "to say farewell"), [1] or complimentary close in American English, [2] is an expression used to say farewell, especially a word or phrase used to end a letter or message, [3][4] or a speech made at a farewell. [3]