מאמי
Mami
/MAH-mee/
Babe, hon, dear (casual affectionate address, used across genders)
💬What does Mami mean in Hebrew?
Mami (מאמי, pronounced MAH-mee) is casual Israeli slang for addressing someone warmly — similar to "babe", "hon", or "dear" in English. It's used across genders, though most often directed at or used between women, and is common in Mizrahi families and youth culture. Its exact origin is debated: it may come from a shared Mediterranean baby-talk root or from global pop-culture use of the Spanish "mami". It is unrelated to the actual Hebrew word for mother, "ima".
🔊How to pronounce Mami
מאמי
Mami
MAH-mee
Capitals = stressed syllable
The Hebrew script reads right-to-left. The English transliteration uses the Israeli Sephardic pronunciation standard.
🇮🇱When do Israelis use Mami?
Common informal address, especially in Mizrahi and Yemenite Israeli families and youth/street culture. Can be platonic or mildly flirtatious depending on context — not to be confused with "ima", the actual Hebrew word for mother.
Fun fact
Despite sounding like it should mean "mommy", mami in Israeli slang has nothing to do with actual motherhood — much like "baby" in English doesn't literally mean infant.
📝Mami in a sentence — examples
מאמי, מה קורה? מזמן לא דיברנו.
Mami, ma kore? Mizman lo dibarnu.
Hey babe, what's up? We haven't talked in ages.
תשמעי מאמי, אני חייב לספר לך משהו.
Tishme'i mami, ani khayav lesaper lakh mashehu.
Listen hon, I have to tell you something.
מאמי שלי, תבוא לפה רגע.
Mami sheli, tavo lepo rega.
My dear, come here a second.
הכל טוב, מאמי? נראה שאת עייפה.
Hakol tov, mami? Nir'e she'at ayefa.
You okay, hon? You look tired.
תודה מאמי, אתה תותח.
Toda mami, ata totakh.
Thanks, buddy, you're a legend.
📖Origin of Mami
Uncertain — likely a blend of the shared baby-talk root "mama/mami" found across Levantine Arabic, Judeo-Spanish (Ladino), and Mediterranean family speech, reinforced in the 2000s–2010s by global pop-culture use of "mami" in Spanish-language music. Not a derivative of the standard Hebrew word for mother, "ima".
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Related Hebrew slang words
מותק
Motek
MOH-tek
Sweetie, honey, darling (literally: sweetness)
כפרה
Kapara
kah-pah-RAH
Sweetheart, my dear (a term of endearment rooted in the idea of taking on someone's suffering)
נשמה
Neshama
neh-shah-MAH
Soul — used as sweetheart, my dear (literally: my soul)
אחי
Achi
ah-KHEE
Bro, dude, man (literally: my brother)