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Original poster

No-gendered terms of endearment

91 replies

CaptainWarbeck · 19/08/2017 22:45

After watching the gender neutral school experiment, we realised DH routinely calls DS buddy, mate and champ as pet names, and DD sweetie.

They're both very young still so ample time to change this if we want. But it's so hard to think of non gendered terms of affection. All we've come up with is darling.

Are there any more?

OP posts:
girlwhowearsglasses · 19/08/2017 23:35

I only have boys

I use 'lovvey'
And chicken

MulhuddartDrive · 19/08/2017 23:29

theonly, since going on holiday to Wales last year I call everyone "lovely" Smile

MiaowTheCat · 19/08/2017 23:19

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Ineedacupofteadesperately · 19/08/2017 23:18

We use Pumpkin or love.

LassWiTheDelicateAir · 19/08/2017 23:14

sweetie does not imply cute. It makes me think of sweet- natured- which is most certainly not a bad thing for a boy or a girl to be.

LassWiTheDelicateAir · 19/08/2017 23:11

None of buddy, mate, champ or sweetie are gendered.

I'm struggling to think of any endearments which of themselves indicate the sex of the person.

Original poster
CaptainWarbeck · 19/08/2017 23:09

As hardcore said above.

All DS'S current pet names imply equality between him and DH (buddy, mate) or bigging him up (champ). Which is lovely. But 'sweetie' implies cute and little. Not quite the same.

It's worth watching the BBC prog.

Will consider all these suggestions with DH Grin

OP posts:
Glowinginthedark · 19/08/2017 22:56

Does it matter much? Assuming your son has a 'boys' name and your daughter has a 'girls' name I'm sure it won't do much harm. My boys get babe, buddy, sausage, chicken, cupcake Grin whatever pops into my head!

retreatwhispering · 19/08/2017 22:56

We call our DC monster mouse.

TheOnlyLivingBoyInNewCross · 19/08/2017 22:54

A friend of mine uses "lovely" as a noun rather than an adjective for a term of endearment - so, "Don't worry, my lovely".

It makes me feel all warm inside Grin

QoFE · 19/08/2017 22:52

Chicken
Poppet
Sweetie pie
Star
Beauty
Lovely
Munchkin
Bear (as in, come on bear, as in the dreadful joke about the bear in the cheese drawer)
Sausage (this is DPs term of endearment not mine!)

These are all used interchangeably between our girl and boy :) I guess people would probably think of beauty and sweetie pie as girly ones but my DS is beautiful and is a sweetie pie.

HardcoreLadyType · 19/08/2017 22:52

It's not bad to use terms of endearment, dudsville, the problem is differentiating between boys and girls, reinforcing differences that often, are not really there.

newtlover · 19/08/2017 22:52

sausage
poppet

Mxyzptlk · 19/08/2017 22:50

Why not make some up?

dudsville · 19/08/2017 22:49

What was the result of the experiment? Is it bad to use those terms of endearment?

MorrisZapp · 19/08/2017 22:47

Darling, sweetheart, baby, honey, sweetpea, treasure, love

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