Translations dictionary
mon chéri
or mon cheri [mon shair-ee]
What does mon chéri mean?
Mon chéri means “my dear” or “sweetheart” in French. It’s an adorable term of endearment for a male person someone is fond of, romantically or platonically.
Where does mon chéri come from?
The expression mon chéri comes from French. Chéri is from a French verb form for “cherished” and mon is the male personal pronoun “my.”
So, your chéri is someone you prize and treasure. The female equivalent is ma chérie. Mon chéri is sometimes shortened to mon cher.
Graphic Ami
Using mon chéri for a particular person—as in Mon chéri! or “My love!”—goes back to at least the early 18th century.
Quick Meme
The expression mon chéri remains common in French today.
Sometime in in the mid-1800s, cheri (usually without the accent) entered English for “a sweet young woman.” Mon cheri to mean “my darling” or “my sweetheart” appears in English-language publications around that time to reflect the speech of French.
Music legend Stevie Wonder made a soul hit out of a version of mon chéri in his 1969 “My Cherie Amour,” or my darling love.
Examples of mon chéri
Who uses mon chéri?
Mon chéri is used to add a French flair to English speech or writing. It’s basically a fancier way to say my boo or honey.
Cheezburger
While the expression is properly written with an acute accent over the E in chéri, English often drops it. English users are also likely to use mon cheri for men or women, unlike the French.
Meme Generator
Mon chéri often has a romantic sense too …
🎉Yesterday afternoon a stroll in Esher with mon chéri. 💃 Love him so much. 💖💖 — feeling fantastic
— MapMeXclusive (@MapMeXclusive) October 8, 2018
… but in French and English it can also be used as a term of endearment for children.
As grandma used to say" c'est la vie mon chéri" …. Ahhhh Grandma 🙄
— Josie Freeman (@ladyjojo0701) July 4, 2017
Note
This is not meant to be a formal definition of mon chéri like most terms we define on Dictionary.com, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of mon chéri that will help our users expand their word mastery.