noun
-
something that endears, such as an affectionate utterance
-
the act or process of endearing or the condition of being endeared
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of endearment
Explanation
Next time you cringe when a family member calls you by your childhood nickname in public, remember, Snoopy, it's just a term of endearment — meant to show affection, not make you miserably embarrassed. When you break apart the word endearment, you probably recognize the word endear, a verb that means "to make admired or beloved." The suffix -ment can turn a verb into a noun, so endearment is something that shows affection or admiration, like calling someone "my love" instead of his or her name or playfully whacking your brother on the head when you walk by where he sits, doing his homework.
Vocabulary lists containing endearment
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
They teased me and called me Dogface, a term of endearment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
Aidar had called the capybara “princess” in a way that sounded like a term of endearment for all female capybaras, so I asked for the capybara’s formal name.
From Slate ● May 27, 2026
"I've never really thought of it as an insult, more a term of endearment," he says.
From BBC ● Nov. 14, 2025
“What may be a term of endearment in one context can be perceived differently in another.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2025
There was affection in his voice, and his use of the term “small one” brought sudden tears to Ranofer’s eyes, so vividly did he recall his father’s voice using that very endearment.
From "The Golden Goblet" by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
The word “Paul” became my substitute for endearments.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 8, 2024
Ah, Valentine’s Day … A day for cardiac-themed tokens, embossed endearments and sugary sweet love — or, in other words, conversation hearts.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 14, 2024
She called Jenkins by endearments and seemed eager to get to know him.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 4, 2022
We don’t exchange heart-shaped boxes of chocolates or glossy cards with manufactured endearments inside, and we don’t go around kissing in public or saying “I love you” twenty times a day.
From The New Yorker ● Jul. 23, 2018
Since the censors’ Greek was even worse than Milton’s, they often made mistakes, lopping off endearments, x’s and o’s.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
