grandma
Americannoun
-
grandmas
plural
noun
Usage
What does grandma mean? Grandma is an informal word for grandmother—the mother of a person’s parent. When a mother’s child has their own children, that mother becomes a grandma. The word ma is an informal way to say mother. Grandma is often combined with a name, especially when a person has two grandmothers that they call Grandma, as in Grandma Marg and Grandma Marie. Should grandma be capitalized?Grandma should be capitalized when it’s used as a proper name, as in Please tell Grandma that I miss her. But grandma does not need to be capitalized when it’s simply used as a way to refer to her, as in Please tell my grandma that I miss her. Example: It doesn’t matter what you call your grandma, as long as you call her.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of grandma
Explanation
Your grandma is either your mom's mom or your dad's mom. Some people call their grandma "Granny" or "Nana" or "Oma." Grandma is a very common, informal way to say "grandmother." While the preferences of grandmas vary, many of them enjoy being known as Grandma to their grandchildren. Most people use the word grandmother when they're writing or speaking generally or formally. Grandmama came first, around 1749, and grandma followed at the end of that century.
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:
At home, his grandma and mother would speak to him in Spanish — as far as he knew, he was just Mexican.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
Emerson shrugs: “I mean my grandma definitely took me to a Passover thing once when I was like seven.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
I tell the story in the book of going to the grocery store with my grandma every weekend and it was owned by a local family.
From Slate ● Jun. 20, 2026
It was a very nice way to kill time with grandma, and not much more.
From Salon ● Jun. 16, 2026
"My grandma sent me a postcard from Florida," Rosie said, "and it had an alligator on it."
From "All About Sam" by Lois Lowry
“We’re going to start a wall where customers can put up their own photos—of their grandmas, of course.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
"Be good when you get to the rainbow bridge, play with the older brothers and sisters, grandpas and grandmas from the neighbourhood," one user wrote.
From Barron's ● Dec. 2, 2025
Maybe her feisty grandmas on both sides, who were also anticipating this day, taught her that.
From Salon ● Nov. 6, 2024
“Chimaeras are also rather ancient relatives – the grandmas and grandpas – of fish and I thought the name was well suited.”
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2024
When she picked me up and held me in her arms, taking a good look at me, like grandmas do, she found a bruise on my neck.
From "Betty Before X" by Ilyasah Shabazz and Renée Watson
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.
