# When speaking about/to your parents what terms do you use?



## Jules (Jun 5, 2022)

When you’re speaking to or about your parents what terms do you use?

After twice hearing Prince Charles refer to his mother as Mommy, I wondered if this is a common British way of speaking.  My British friends both say Mom.

If I were speaking about her, I’d say my mother.  If talking to her, it would me Mom.


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## Murrmurr (Jun 5, 2022)

I always say Mom. 

I bet the prince says "mummy". My British friend calls his mom "mum".


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## hollydolly (Jun 5, 2022)

Jules said:


> When you’re speaking to or about your parents what terms do you use?
> 
> After twice hearing Prince Charles refer to his mother as Mommy, I wondered if this is a common British way of speaking.  My British friends both say Mom.
> 
> If I were speaking about her, I’d say my mother.  If talking to her, it would me Mom.


we call our mums and dads...just that... the upper echelon refer to their parents as Mama and Papa... Charles referred to his mother on her 92nd birthday as Mummy, and she was standing on the stage and rolled her eyes..so he did it on purpose this time to get the laughs from the crowd..


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## horseless carriage (Jun 5, 2022)

Jules said:


> When you’re speaking to or about your parents what terms do you use?
> 
> After twice hearing Prince Charles refer to his mother as Mommy, I wondered if this is a common British way of speaking.  My British friends both say Mom.
> 
> If I were speaking about her, I’d say my mother.  If talking to her, it would me Mom.


Mummy, in Brit speak, has nothing to do with ancient Egypt, it's an endearing expression that small children use to call their mother by. Using the endearment in adulthood is snobbish, most of the nation simply shorten mummy to mum.


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## Nathan (Jun 5, 2022)

Jules said:


> When you’re speaking to or about your parents what terms do you use?


Speaking to: Mom or Dad
speaking about: Mom or Dad, sometimes mother or father.


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## oldman (Jun 5, 2022)

I called my dad “Pops” one time and regretted it.


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## hollydolly (Jun 5, 2022)

oldman said:


> I called my dad “Pops” one time and regretted it.


I called my mum Liz one time,...and regretted it....


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## Blessed (Jun 5, 2022)

It was Mom and Dad, my mother was Grandma and GG to my grandson. My husbands parents were also Mom and Dad, Dad's mother was Grandmother or Grandmother D.  She was very formal in her deameanor.  My husband and I had been married for twenty years when she passed, she would always ask when were we going to be married.  She was catholic and believed you were not married unless it was in the church. LOL


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## oldman (Jun 5, 2022)

hollydolly said:


> I called my mum Liz one time,...and regretted it....


You didn’t get hit, did you? My dad was a First Sgt. In the Army and he always demanded respect at home. When I turned 8 years of age, he sat me down for a talk about respect. He ended the conversation by telling me that from here on out, I could only call him Dad. It was then that I thought I was being funny and said, “OK Pops.” It was about 2 in the afternoon and I got sent to my room for the rest of the day. My mom did bring me my dinner to my room, which I kind of liked. I had to apologize to him. I told him that the only reason I called him that was becauseI I heard Rick Nelson call his dad that name on the TV show. It didn’t matter to him.


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## hollydolly (Jun 5, 2022)

oldman said:


> You didn’t get hit, did you? My dad was a First Sgt. In the Army and he always demanded respect at home. When I turned 8 years of age, he sat me down for a talk about respect. He ended the conversation by telling me that from here on out, I could only call him Dad. It was then that I thought I was being funny and said, “OK Pops.” It was about 2 in the afternoon and I got sent to my room for the rest of the day. My mom did bring me my dinner to my room, which I kind of liked. I had to apologize to him. I told him that the only reason I called him that was becauseI I heard Rick Nelson call his dad that name on the TV show. It didn’t matter to him.


I didn't get hit that time... one of the few times I didn't... but I was quickly told off...


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## Pink Biz (Jun 5, 2022)

About them: Mom/Dad or Mother/Father

To them: Mom/Dad


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## Gaer (Jun 5, 2022)

All my life, I called my Mother, "Mother", even when I was a toddler.    I never called her "Mom".


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## Della (Jun 5, 2022)

Mama and Daddy, always.

One of my best  friends has a son who is chief of police here.  I was with her in the hospital ER one day when her son came in with some uniformed police, looked at her and said, "HI Mama!"


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## horseless carriage (Jun 5, 2022)

hollydolly said:


> I called my mum Liz one time,...and regretted it....


You know that Pop can be a shortened version of Poppa, or even, going back further, Papa? At my Catholic school the headmaster was one of a number of priests that were also university trained teachers.

Lesson number one, when attending a catholic grammar school, make absolutely sure that you are not within earshot of a priest if you replace the formal address of a priest, namely Father, with the sobriquet: 'Pop.' Calling that headmaster "Pop Cashin," instead of Father Cashin, had me in front of the owner of that name in order to explain myself.

Thankfully I was blessed with quick wits. "Father," I said as respectfully as I could muster, "today I learned why the expression: "walls have ears, is one to pay attention to." Father Cashin had a way of telling you that he was listening, it was a comical way, but nobody ever dared to even so much as smile when he did it. Father Cashin could raise a single eyebrow, and that was what I was looking at.

"When I said Pop, it wasn't mean't as any sort of rude or disrespectful insult, far from it. You are known as Pop Cashin by all the pupils in a kind of endearing way." Father Cashin dropped the eyebrow and raised the other one. I tell you, when you are in front of a headmaster that can do a cancan with his eyebrows it's difficult not to smirk, but I didn't. Instead, I read the body language. 

"You are, Sir, I went on, forever Father, and I would never even think it otherwise," adding, "but boys are boys." Which somehow shifted the blame onto my cohorts. Father Cashin gave me a lesson about respect, I looked like I was appearing to pay attention, but in my heart I knew that this was a verbal warning, next time I would be facing a flogging. "Yes Father," I said, when he had finished, and with that I was dismissed.


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## Pepper (Jun 5, 2022)

Ma & Dad.  Like Ma Barker.


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## hollydolly (Jun 5, 2022)

Pepper said:


> Ma & Dad.  Like Ma Barker.


In Scotland where I'm from, many people use the term Mammy  when addressing their mother...  & Da or Daddy (even when children are adults) .. for dad... 

It's pretty much used by the Irish community entirely .. and because we Scots and Irish are intertwined in Scotland as so many of us have Irish ancestors, it's a common way to address parents..


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## jujube (Jun 5, 2022)

My mother was always Mom, Mama or Mommy.  The last thing I said to her as she slipped away was, "I love you, Mommy-Girl".  In my family, -Girl always gets added to your name when speaking affectionately.

My father was Daddy, hardly ever Dad, and it became Pop later in life.  He was "Pop" to a multitude of people he shared no genes with buy considered him their honorary father and we all just got into the habit.


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## hollydolly (Jun 5, 2022)

jujube said:


> My mother was always Mom, Mama or Mommy.  The last thing I said to her as she slipped away was, "I love you, Mommy-Girl".  *In my family, -Girl always gets added to your name when speaking affectionately.
> *
> My father was Daddy, hardly ever Dad, and it became Pop later in life.  He was "Pop" to a multitude of people he shared no genes with buy considered him their honorary father and we all just got into the habit.


Funny you should say that because I've always called my Daughter ''babby-girl''.. even now she's 46...


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## Pam (Jun 6, 2022)

I always called mine Mam and Dad. Mam being very common here in the northwest of England when I was young. It's dying out a bit now and more people are using the word Mum instead.


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## fuzzybuddy (Jun 6, 2022)

Ma & Dad. Both have passed, and I have never called them, "Mother & Father".


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## IrisSenior (Jun 6, 2022)

Mom and Dad


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## Pinky (Jun 6, 2022)

Mommy/Mom
Daddy/Dad
"Mum" for my ex-Aussie MIL


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## OneEyedDiva (Jun 6, 2022)

I thought the British said "Mum". When I see stories about British children and their mothers...that's the word I see used most often.  I called my mother Mama and sometimes when speaking about her Mommy. I always called my father Daddy.


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## Sassycakes (Jun 6, 2022)

When I was young I called them Mommy and Daddy. When I got older it was Mom and Dad.


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## dobielvr (Jun 6, 2022)

Mom and Dad

Towards the end of my mom's life, while I was taking care of her...I would call her 'mama'


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## Knight (Jun 6, 2022)

Pink Biz said:


> About them: Mom/Dad or Mother/Father
> 
> To them: Mom/Dad


Same for me


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## Been There (Jun 7, 2022)

I used to like to listen to people speak about their parents, if they spoke kindly of them. I know some kids were raised in abusive homes and that's just being dealt a terrible hand to start out in life. You have my respect and sympathy that you made it through those years and turned out OK, hopefully. 

My parents died when I was very young, but my grandparents were the best there was. When I graduated high school, I honored my Grandmother and Grandfather and then I did the same when I graduated from the Naval Academy. Without their support, I don't know how my life would have turned out.


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## Capt Lightning (Jun 7, 2022)

With us, it was Mum, Dad, Granny and Granda.  Mother would sometimes refer to father as 'Pop'.   They had some 'colourful'  Glaswegian terms for referring to me.  Talking about them, I tend to use Mother and Father as I had a somewhat distant relationship with them.


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## Trish (Jun 7, 2022)

When we (family) are talking about mum, she is often referred to as "mummy" and it was the same with "daddy" but, when talking to them it was always mum and dad.  Most people I know use the same terms.  One of my brothers began calling them "mater" and "pater" which didn't go down too well!

_Noun. mater (plural maters or matres) (Britain, slang, now chiefly archaic or humorous) *Mother*._


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## Trish (Jun 7, 2022)

Capt Lightning said:


> With us, it was Mum, Dad, Granny and Granda.  Mother would sometimes refer to father as 'Pop'.   They had some 'colourful'  Glaswegian terms for referring to me.  Talking about them, I tend to use Mother and Father as I had a somewhat distant relationship with them.


My mum and her mother always disliked "granny" so mum was always "nanny" and her mother was "nanna".


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## oldman (Jun 7, 2022)

Gaer said:


> All my life, I called my Mother, "Mother", even when I was a toddler.    I never called her "Mom".


My sister did the same. I asked her why she didn’t just call her mom and she said she didn’t know.


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## JaniceM (Jun 8, 2022)

When I was little-bitty I called them Mommy and Daddy, but when I became school-aged she became Ma and he became Pop.  Somehow I do not remember this, but I was told the latter was something I picked up from a t.v. show.  

Pop always remained Pop, but I eventually began referring to her by her first name..  and sometimes other terms that aren't so pleasant.


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## WheatenLover (Jun 9, 2022)

I called my parents Mom and Dad. Once in awhile, I called my mother Mutti. Grandparents were Oma, Opa, Gramma, and Pa.


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## mrstime (Jun 9, 2022)

Trish said:


> My mum and her mother always disliked "granny" so mum was always "nanny" and her mother was "nanna".


I was raised by my grandparents, grandma would never have tolerated granny.  Back in her day you couldn't  buy sanitary products, so they used cloths that they had to wash out daily. Those cloths were called "granny rags"


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## RadishRose (Jun 9, 2022)

Mommy and Daddy, later Mom and Dad.
Gramma and Grampa, paternal.
Babcia, maternal.


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