The Funny things we call people (babe, dude, darling and geezer)

I've been watching a bit of reality TV recently and it reminded me of some of the English phrases and sayings that make me cringe. In particular, the things we call eachother. Some are great, and some are just terrible. I guess it depends on your background, upbringing, social circle and age.

There are people I know, who use phrases that disgust me... all the time! Some make me laugh, some make my cry, some make me pity, while others don't do anything at all. Why do we have so many names for people? Why do some make me cringe and others not?

I thought this topic was worthy of its own lens, and I'm sure it will grow over time as I hear new strange names along the way.

If you're one of those people who call your girlfriend "baby" or "babe", why not switch it up and say "I love you so much dude"? I promise you that no harm will come from doing this. I switch it up all the time and it just gets a laugh from my partner because she knows I really love her and that predictable eventually becomes boring.

If your girlfriend/boyfriend/husband/wife/lover/friend etc, is offended by the switch up then they still have some growing to do. If you know that the person is going through a hard time or really does have serious problems then I suggest you begin lightly and move upwards from there.

I don't know about you, but everytime I hear couples calling eachother "baby" it makes me cringe. It's not because I have a problem with expressing myself or anything like that, it just doesn't seem real. It's like they have watched too many bad TV drama's when they were teenagers and think that it's "what you say" when you love someone.

To me, I couldn't say "baby" to a girl I loved, I might do it if I was in a new relationship, and that's exactly my point!

What do you think? Maybe you call your partner "baby"? If you use this hideous word in the same context as I have described, please consider reading the "Why not switch it up?" module and trying something different.

My youngest son Lennon (pictured above) is the only person I will be calling baby, and even that won't be for too much longer!

Although this is quite universal, there's a specific way that the kiwi variation of FELLOW is used by the Maori people of New Zealand... it always refers to a male and is used to address or talk about a male aged 18 - 40 (unless you are saying OLD FULLA) and just regular New Zealanders. Here are a couple of examples.

What a funny fulla! (usually sarcastic)

I seen this fulla down the road.

Please let me know if you can think of any others so I can add to the lens as well as the poll.

Hey Bro, whaddaya up to?

Living in New Zealand, I hear the word "BRO" used quite a bit. Although it's used in all English speaking countries, no one quite does it like the "Maori" people of New Zealand. It's not something I will attempt to emulate in writing, mostly because I can not do it justice. I may upload an audio or video clip to show you at some point.

The funny thing about the usage of "bro" in New Zealand is that older white males are quite often offended when addressed as "bro". They will quite often reply "I'm not ya bro.... bro" Although I never use it myself, I really like the idea that we are all brothers and sisters, and this is exactly how Maori and Pacific Islanders live... and how we should all live (in my opinion).

The term is used in the USA, UK, Australia, South America and South Africa, all with slightly different usages

So the next time someone calls you bro, don't be offended, shake their hand and share the love!

If you haven't seen these then you're missing out. Why not own them on DVD?

"Honey" and "Hun" are 2 that I use myself quite a bit. I would usually use it to address my partner if I'm in a good mood or, if I want something. I also use it when I talk my 2 sons, I guess it's because they are sweet (most of the time). Come to think of it, I use quite a few different names of food to address people. I also call my kids chicken, sausage and muffin (sounds like a delicious breakfast to me). I have actually called my youngest "My little sausage McMuffin" before. Someone might cringe when hearing people use the word "honey" but it's one of my personal favourites. If you don't use it, give it a try!

I can just imagine her right now: 4 foot 9 inches tall, wrinkly white skin, glasses, purple washed and permed hair and clothes smelling like mothballs... she enters the room. "Hello love, how's my handsome young man doing?"

I haven't heard "love" used by anyone under the age of 50, but its use is almost exclusive to a full head of grey hair.

I wouldn't cringe if I heard a young person say it, I would probably just chuckle to myself. It's quite a nice name for someone, it makes you feel special and cared for.

This is the one I use most commonly, it's usually reserved for males aged 12 to 49. After 49 I would address them by their name. This isn't a rule, but just something I noticed in retrospect. When I use the word "man" I always say "Hey" before it. The only exception is "Oi" Here are a few ways that I like to use "Man"

"Hey man, howzit?"

"Hey man, what are you up to?"

"Hey man, hows things?"

"Hey man, up to?"

"Oi man, what the hell are you doing?"

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There are only 2 situations where I use the word "darling" The first is with my 2 sons, at the moment they are aged 6 and 2. If I'm happy to see them (which I usually am), I'll say something like... "Hello darling, how are you?"

I also use it when I want something from my partner.... usually I want to spend some money or need a massage. "I'll say [name] my wonderful amazing Darling, can I have 50 bucks to spend, I need some new jeans".

I've heard old people use the term and that's fine, but it's a bit weird for me when younger people use it.