1.
mother (highly polite term)
Very polite term for someone else's mother, used to show respect to the listener or a third party. In some traditional or well-to-do families, children also use it to address their own mother. More formal than お母さん.
The honorific prefix お plus the honorific suffix 様. Used mainly for the listener's or a third party's mother; when talking about your own mother to outsiders, say 母.
Register
From casual to formal:
- ママ / お母ちゃん: mom, mommy — casual, often childlike
- 母: my mother — humble; for your own mother when talking to outsiders
- お母さん: mother — standard polite
- お母様: mother — very polite, usually someone else's mother
Common collocations
Related Words
Compare:
おばあさま (grandmother (highly polite))