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"sir, Mr." in seven languages

Meaningsir, Mr.

Spanish

señor

/seˈɲoɾ/

masc.inherited

French

monsieur

/məsjø/

masc.inherited

mon + sieur, from the nominative SENIOR; the accusative gave seigneur 'lord'.

Italian

signore

/siɲˈɲore/

masc.inherited

Drops its -e before a name: il signor Rossi.

Portuguese

senhor

/seˈɲoh/

masc.inherited

Romanian

domn

/domn/

masc.other source · Latin DOMINUM 'master'

Addressing someone uses the vocative: domnule.

Catalan

senyor

/səˈɲo/

masc.inherited

English

sir

/sɝ/

from Latin/French · Old French sire

English → Italiansir, Mr.signoreCognateSame source — inherited, learned or borrowed. You can recognize it.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

SENIŌREM‘older (man), elder’

All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.

The story

Respect meant age: SENIOR 'the elder' became the polite word for a man everywhere, its NI turning into ñ and gn. French monsieur is literally 'my lord'.

English relatives: senior, sir, sire

Sound laws at work

NN, GN and N + yod

Learn it

Practice the Greetings & courtesy deckQuiz a friend on it

In a sentence

  • esBuenas noches, señor.
  • frBonsoir, monsieur.
  • itBuonasera, signore.
  • ptBoa noite, senhor.
  • roBună seara, domnule.
  • caBon vespre, senyor.
  • enGood evening, sir.

More words from the same Latin

More in Greetings & courtesy

All Greetings & courtesy words