Topic: Should "sir" be capitalized?

Should "sir" be capitalized in the following case:
    "You're out of uniform, cadet!" the admiral said.
    "Yes, Sir!"

Replace Sir with Mom or Dad and it clearly should be capitalized. I've seen "son" written both ways (with or without caps). A grammar site I use says to capitalize when the word replaces a name, but not for nicknames (e.g., sonny boy).

In the example above, cadet is lowercase, even though it stands in for a name. Therefore I think Sir should be lowercase as well, for consistency.

What then to do about Son?

Thanks
Dirk

Quote Post 1

Re: Should "sir" be capitalized?

Norm d'Plume wrote:

Should "sir" be capitalized in the following case:
    "You're out of uniform, cadet!" the admiral said.
    "Yes, Sir!"

Replace Sir with Mom or Dad and it clearly should be capitalized. I've seen "son" written both ways (with or without caps). A grammar site I use says to capitalize when the word replaces a name, but not for nicknames (e.g., sonny boy).

In the example above, cadet is lowercase, even though it stands in for a name. Therefore I think Sir should be lowercase as well, for consistency.

What then to do about Son?

Thanks
Dirk

"Cadet" is a simple noun as if the admiral addressed him as "bug" and therefore never capitalized except at  the beginning of a sentence. "Sir" is not a simple noun except in the instance of "dear sirs and ladies" or other archaic forms - therefore some say it should never be capitalized because of its archaic origin as a simple noun - but others, because it has special meaning as a proper noun in most circumstances in which it is used, say it should always be capitalized except in "dear sirs and ladies." I think the "replaces a name" is a red herring for this word. Dear Sir: salutation; Sir Arthur Clarke; Yes, Sir.

Quote Post 2