sing to

sing to (one)

To address one while singing a song; to direct a song to one. I always sing to my daughter when I'm putting her to bed. The singer has an uncanny way of making you feel like she is singing directly to you when she performs.
See also: sing
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

sing to someone or something

to sing a song and direct it at someone or something. The singer sang to a man in the front row, and he was very embarrassed by it. Claire sang to an older audience and put many of them to sleep.
See also: sing
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • sing to (one)
  • song
  • sing up
  • a lonely little petunia in an onion patch
  • (one's) jam
  • could (do something) with one arm tied behind (one's) back
  • do something with one hand behind your back
  • flash in the pan
  • a flash in the pan
  • be not whistling Dixie
References in classic literature
It was the little living Nightingale, who, sitting outside on a bough, had heard the need of her Emperor and had come to sing to him of comfort and hope.
Now I will sing to you again; but you must promise me one thing '
Yellow Fairy Book
You must sing to me with your breast against a thorn.
The Happy Prince and Other Tales
The princess, hearing that Varenka had a good voice, asked her to come and sing to them in the evening.
Anna Karenina
The aim of World Singing Day is not only to sing, but to sing together and to sing to others.
Doha Singers to represent Qatar at global singing challenge
Let us sing to him a new song, play skilfully on the strings, with loud shouts" (Ps.33).
Do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do..
Often in Beloved, when characters cannot read or write or even talk about the brutality they experience as slaves, they sing to affirm their participation in life and defend their status as human beings.
Truth in timbre: Morrison's extension of slave narrative song in Beloved
Sing to the Prophets, Apostles and Kings, to Our Lord.
Your Poem: SING RELIGIOUS MEN SING
If you watch infants and children, you will find that they sing to themselves all the time.
Makin' music: songs, rhythm, and creative expression
Second, the psalmist tells us that we are to sing to God.
The nativity of our Lord: December 25, 2004
Usually, when birds sing to each other, both teacher and student participate, making it difficult for observers to determine who is doing what.
Winging it: the female cowbird performs as a silent singing teacher
The psalmist, Jeremiah, Paul, and John the Baptizer all stand before us as examples of people who listen to God sing to the cosmos and then sing that song to others.
Second Sunday after Christmas: January 2, 2005
After all, we don't need to listen too attentively to the beat of the songs we sing to hear an echo of our own pulse, the rhythm of our breathing, or the cadence of our footfall.
Sing your heart out
The psalmist and the faithful sing to God prayerful verses filled with hope and anticipation.
The Epiphany of our Lord: January 6, 2005