sirs

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of sir.

   Step this way, sirs, your seats are ready upstairs.

   Old business letters often opened with "Dear Sirs" when written to a company.

   Note

   Its everyday work is direct address, greeting several men at once: "Step this way, sirs." The plural carries the singular's full range: men of rank, knights, officers, teachers, or simply adult men whose names are unknown. It can also open a letter to several unnamed male recipients. The same spelling serves the verb for calling someone "sir", so position decides: a plural noun in address, a verb after a subject.

2. 2
   verbcolloquial

   Third-person singular simple present of sir.

   The doorman sirs each guest as he checks their reservations.

   He sirs his superiors so often that it has become a running joke.

   Note

   An informal verb made from the courtesy title itself: to sir someone is to call them "sir," and this is the form that follows he, she or it. It is transitive, so the person addressed comes straight after it with no preposition (the doorman sirs each guest). Because the verb is informal, it often describes a habit being noticed, sometimes with a smile, as when someone sirs his superiors constantly.

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