maman

French

Alternative forms

• m'man

Etymology

Inherited from Middle French memmen, from baby talk, possibly influenced by Latin mamma.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ma.mɑ̃/

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Noun

maman f (plural mamans)

1. (informal or childish) mummy, mommy, mom, mum

   Synonym: mère

   Au revoir, maman, je t'appelle demain.

   Bye, Mom, I'll call you tomorrow.

   Pleure pas, mon chéri, maman est là.

   Don't cry, sweetie; Mommy's here.

   Il y a cinq canetons dans la cour, mais je ne vois pas la maman.

   There are five ducklings in the yard, but I don't see the mother duck.

Derived terms

• belle-maman
• grand-maman

Descendants

• Haitian Creole: manman
• → Portuguese: mamã
• → Spanish: mamá
  • → Bikol Central: mama
  • → Cebuano: mama
  • → Tagalog: mama
• → Persian: مامان (mâmân)

Further reading

• “maman”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Galician

Verb

maman

1. third-person plural present indicative of mamar

Spanish

Verb

maman

1. third-person plural present indicative of mamar

Turkish

Noun

maman

1. second-person singular possessive of mama

Yami

Noun

maman

1. betel pot