お母さん – We need to talk about Mom in Japanese

There are several ways to say mom in Japanese. When you are talking with family about your mother you will use a different word from when you talk about your mother to people outside of your family. You will also use different words when talking about other people’s mothers from your own mother. In formal situations, your family is seen as an extension of you. So you would talk humbly about your own family. when talking to others.

Talking to about other’s Mother

In Japan, it is polite to talk humbly about your own family members and respectfully about other’s families. When talking about your own mother use 母はは and when talking about someone else’s use お母かあさん.

Talking about your Own Mother

おかあさん

When talking with her or about her with other family members it is normal to say おかあさん. If you want to use a more intimate word you can say かあさん or even かあちゃん. Children may call their mom おかあさんwhen talking with other children or adults.

ママ

This is the same as the English word and is used in the same situations. Kids may call their mother ママ or others when talking to kids may refer to their mother as ママ.

母

As stated already, use this when talking to people outside of your family about your mom.

母上

母上ははうえ is very respectful and used when talking with your own mother or with family. It is not commonly used in real life though but rather in dramas, manga or other fiction. If you want to use it with your family though, you can even say 母上様さま to show even more respect.

お袋

お袋ふくろ is another relaxed way of referring to your own mother. It is the equivalent to one of the Japanese words for dad, おやじ:

https://japaneseuniverse.com/2020/06/16/dad-in-japanese/

Resources

Mom – Weblio