maman
/ma.mɑ̃/
The French phrase for "mom" is maman.
maman is an affectionate, informal term used by children or adults when speaking to or about their mothers.
Which one should you use?
While maman is the equivalent of "mom", the word mère is the more formal or biological term equivalent to "mother".
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
maman is an informal term.
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural form of maman is mamans.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation of maman is /ma.mɑ̃/.
Did you know?
- While maman is affectionate, using the formal mère in a casual family setting can signal anger or a cold distance between a child and their mother.
- French has a specific term maman-poule, which translates to 'mother hen', used to describe a mother who is overprotective of her children.
- The word maman shares a linguistic root with the Latin word 'mamma', which refers to a breast or a nursing mother.
Examples in context
- Où est maman ?Where is mom?Tatoeba #1498406 by Rovo, translation #687630 by lukaszpp
- Ta maman est là.Your mom is here.Tatoeba #4578597 by sacredceltic, translation #3434400 by CK
- Où est ma maman ?Where's my mom?Tatoeba #3627909 by fleur74, translation #2254645 by CK
- J'ai acheté un cadeau pour maman.I bought a gift for mom.
- 169 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Léa and Hugo are in the living room.
- LéaMaman arrive bientôt.Mom is arriving soon.
- HugoEst-ce qu'elle est avec maman ?Is she with mom?
- LéaNon, maman est seule.No, mom is alone.
- HugoD'accord, j'attends maman alors.Okay, I'll wait for mom then.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry maman, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries maman, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
