How to say sir/ma'am when you don't know the name of the person


When you don't someone's name, how do you call his attention? That is, when
you would say "Sir, could you maybe ..." or "ma'am, you dropped something ..."




If you are working and they are a customer, then お[客]{きゃく}さま is a pretty
normal way to refer to someone.

Also in many contexts,

お[兄]{にい}さん

お[姉]{ねえ}さん

お[父]{とう}さん

お[母]{かあ}さん

おじさん

おばさん

おじいさん

おばあさん

function as ways to address people when you don't know depending on the
person's age.

But perhaps the most common way to get someone's attention is すみません spoken in
their direction.

