Addressing strangers

To round out my little series on relationship terms, here are common ways of addressing strangers in Chinese. (See also Chinese Family Tree, Terms of Endearment, and Mates)All terms are general neutral unless specified.

Restaurant/shop

• fúwùyuán 服务员 = waiter/waitress/worker
• lǎobǎn 老板 = boss/owner
• *xiǎojiě 小姐 / xiǎo gūniang 小姑娘 = girl
• *huǒji 伙计 = guy

Workers with specific skills (e.g. taxi driver, shoe shiner, etc)

• shīfu 师傅 = master

Young people talk

• *měinǚ 美女 = pretty girl
• *shuàigē 帅哥 = handsome guy

Walking down the street (not in a business)

• xiānsheng 先生 = sir, mister
• nǚshì 女士 = miss, ma'am
• xiǎo jiāhuo 小家伙 = child

Could also be used for friends of the family

• bóbo 伯伯/dàye 大爷 = uncle (man older than father)
• shūshu 叔叔 = uncle (man younger than father)
• dàniáng 大娘 / dàmā 大妈 = auntie (woman older than mother)
• āyí 阿姨 = auntie (woman younger than mother)

*NOTE: While I hear people say these, I don't say them myself because I've been told they can have negative connotations or may make some people uncomfortable.