妈妈好
ma ma hao
The English phrase "hello mama" is translated into Chinese as 妈妈好 (ma ma hao).
妈妈好 is a greeting used when speaking to one's mother. If you wish to specify the time of day, you can use Zao shang hao, mama to say "good morning, mama".
How do you pronounce it?
ma ma hao
Did you know?
- The character 妈 is composed of the radical for 'woman' on the left and the phonetic component for 'horse' on the right.
- If a child says 妈妈好 to their mother, it sounds slightly more formal or even performative than how families actually interact in private.
- In traditional Chinese culture, calling out 妈妈 in a loud or demanding tone can be seen as disrespectful, as filial piety emphasizes soft and humble speech toward parents.
Example conversation
Jiayi comes home from school and greets her mother.
- 佳怡 Jiayi妈妈好！Māma hǎo!Hello mama!
- 妈妈你好，佳怡，今天在学校怎么样？Nǐ hǎo, Jiāyí, jīntiān zài xuéxiào zěnmeyàng?Hello Jiayi, how was school today?
- 佳怡 Jiayi非常好，我拿到了满分。Fēicháng hǎo, wǒ nádàole mǎnfēn.Very good, I got a perfect score.
- 妈妈太棒了，妈妈为你感到骄傲！Tài bàng le, māma wèi nǐ gǎndào jiāo'ào!That's great, mama is proud of you!
