お母さん

Pattern visualization

Examples

1. お母さんが料理を作っています。▶ —
   Mom is cooking.
2. 友達のお母さんは優しいです。▶ —
   My friend's mother is kind.

Collocations

Mnemonic

お母さん okaasan — お + 母 (mother) + さん. Addresses own mother OR refers to someone else's. Humble form for own mother to outsiders: 母 haha. The bare 母 rarely stands alone in speech; usually in compounds (母の日 Mother's Day, 母校 alma mater) or with topic markers (母は~).

Quick check

1. In a formal sentence "My mother is 50 years old", which form fits?

   • 母は50歳です (correct, humble for own family)
   • お母さんは50歳です (raises own, awkward in formal contexts)
   • 母は50歳でした (past tense, wrong)
   • 私のお母さんは50歳 (overuses possessive, raises own)