grandmamma

[ grand-muh-mah; gran-mah-muh, grand-, gram- ]

noun

, Informal.

1. grandmother.

Word History and Origins

Origin of grandmamma¹

First recorded in 1740–50; grand- + mamma ¹

Example Sentences

With her are Maurice Chevalier, the perennial spirit of the boulevard himself, as Honore Lachaille; Louis Jourdan as his nephew, Gaston; and Isabel Jeans and Hermione Gingold as Gigi’s aunt and grandmamma, respectively.

From Los Angeles Times

“My grandmamma brought us up to read our Bible every day,” she said.

From Washington Times

In the book, Grandmamma gives the boy two white mice as a consolation, named William and Mary, who serve no particular plot point except to get the boy into the ballroom where he trains them to walk a tight rope.

From Slate

In the book, Grandmamma is getting on in years and catches pneumonia, which requires she and the boy check into the previously mentioned hotel by the sea, where the air will be good for her.

From Slate

First, the movie calls her “Grandma” instead of “Grandmamma” and makes her Alabamian rather than Norwegian.

From Slate

More About Grandmamma

What does grandmamma mean?

Grandmamma is an informal word for grandmother—the mother of a person’s parent.

Grandmamma can also be spelled grandmama. Both words are much less common than grandma. The words mama and mamma are informal ways of saying mother and are much more commonly used.

Grandmamma should be capitalized when it’s used as a proper name, as in Please tell Grandmamma that I miss her. 

But grandmamma does not need to be capitalized when it’s simply used as a way to refer to her, as in Please tell my grandmamma that I miss her. 

Example: It doesn’t matter what you call your grandmamma, as long as you call her.

Where does grandmamma come from?

The first records of the word grandmamma come from around the 1700s. The word mamma is a variant of mama, which is first recorded in the 1500s but was certainly used in speech much earlier than that. The prefix grand- is used in family terms to indicate a person who is one generation removed, as in grandparent and grandchild. (The prefix great- indicates yet another generation, as in great-grandmother.)

Grandmothers often have special bonds with their grandchildren (who they’re known to spoil with love, affection, and candy). It’s common for grandchildren to refer to their grandmothers with informal names. Grandma is perhaps the most common variant of the word grandmother, but there are many others, including grandmamma, grandmom, gramma, granny, and nana. Many families have their own specific version, such as meemaw and MaMotts.

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to grandmamma?

• grandmama (alternate spelling)

What are some synonyms for grandmamma?

• grandma
• grandmom
• granny
• nana
• grandmother

What are some words that share a root or word element with grandmamma? 

• great-grandmother
• grandparent
• grandfather
• mother
• ma
• mama

What are some words that often get used in discussing grandmamma?

• grandchildren
• love
• kindness
• spoil
• special
• care
• family
• matriarch

How is grandmamma used in real life?

Grandmamma is one of the many informal variants of the word grandmother. When it’s used as a proper name, it should be capitalized.

My grandmamma at 23 from the resettlement camp after being liberated from a concentration camp two years earlier. pic.twitter.com/A9P0BInynK

— Mātōnya (@mathonwy) August 2, 2020

My grandmamma always said this….

— Loc (@Loc0825) July 29, 2020

my momma and grandmamma really my hearts man ❤️ so thankful for them

— kaylawayla 💮 (@issaneighbor) July 28, 2020

 

 

Try using grandmamma!

Is grandmamma used correctly in the following sentence?

I’m a grandmamma of two and a mother of five, so I know a thing or two about temper tantrums.