grandma
Americannoun
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.
Etymology
Origin of grandma
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.
"The kids know everything... They have adapted," their grandma said.
From Barron's
From his enthusiastic dancing dad and slumbering grandma to the overly productive frybread vendor, each character is deftly rendered with a familiar and affectionate warmth.
From Salon
When I go home and I’m around my family — my grandma has a very thick Cajun accent — it comes out.
From Los Angeles Times
“No one wants to worry that their battery might not last the commute to work, that drive to see grandma, or the road trip home for the holidays” Bonta said.
“I always liked my mom’s better than my grandma’s. I don’t know why.”
From Salon
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.
