mamma's boy

A form of mama's boy — A male who has a very close bond with his mother, and may consequently be perceived as soft or effeminate.

Similar
mother's boymama's boy

Meanings

mamma's boy1

nounmamma's boy (plural mamma's boys)

plural mamma's boys

  1. alternativeAlternative spelling of mama's boy.

    There are many mamma’s boys and daddie’s girls in this world who can never grow up because their parents are actually too selfish to let go and let the children suffer the consequences for their mistakes.

    1991 March 8, Linda Flora, “Letter to editor: Helpful hints”, in The Daily Advocate, volume 107, number 260, Greenville, Oh., →OCLC, page 4, column 6

Mamma's boy2

nounMamma's boy (plural Mamma's boys)

plural Mamma's boys

  1. alternativeAlternative spelling of mama's boy.

    "Yes, it's just like Mamma says," I concur. / "Don't be such a Mamma's boy. I have decided that this family will not celebrate Halloween[…]" irrevocably decrees Papa. / Mamma bows her head in obedience […]

    2012, Martine Lacombe, “Philadelphia, October 31, 1938”, in Silver Orphan: A Social Novel, 5 Leaf Clover Publishing, →ISBN, page 97
    2 more examples

    First, she should tell her mother-in-law that the Bible says that when a man marries he should “leave his father and mother and cleave unto his wife.” And if that doesn’t sink in, the wife should put both her mother-in-law and her husband in the back seat. Then Sonny can climb onto Mamma’s lap to be cuddled and rocked again. These Mamma’s boys make lousy husbands.

    1976 January 6, Abigail Van Buren [pseudonym; Pauline Phillips], “Dear Abby: More on Back-seat Mothers-in-law”, in The Daily Freeman, volume CV, number 67, Kingston, N.Y., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 8, column 8

    They were different from German posters, softer, more homely, the gentle pastel colours flowing into one another as if they had been painted by children anxious to please Mamma. German designs were by contrast sharp-edged, declarative and frightening: statements of the supremacy of the Aryan race. How could these pastel poseurs – these Mamma’s boys – be winning the war?

    1999, Paul Leonard, “Special Weapons”, in Stephen Cole, editor, More Short Trips: A Collection of Short Stories (Short Trips), London: BBC Worldwide, →ISBN, page 153

Synonyms & antonyms

nouna boy excessively attached to his mother; lacking normal masculine interests

Similar
mother's boymama's boy
Broader
Also see

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Cite this entry
APA

mamma's boy. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mamma's%20boy

MLA

“mamma's boy.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mamma's%20boy. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mamma's boy,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mamma's%20boy.

Source: mamma's boy on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.