English terms of endearment: honey, darling, love, and 20+ more

The short answer

The world of English terms of endearment is much more complex and culturally varied than it seems at first. A London taxi driver might naturally call a stranger love, while the same would feel odd to a New Yorker. Linguist David Crystal describes the English-speaking world in The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language as a place where one of the richest informal vocabularies for expressing emotion has developed.

According to Ethnologue’s 2024 data, nearly 1.5 billion people learn English worldwide. If you want to understand exactly when someone calls another person honey, darling, or love, and what the difference is, this guide explains it. It includes pronunciation, cultural context, and when to avoid certain expressions.

One key principle: not every term of endearment is romantic in English. In British English, love, dear, and pet can be neutral and natural, even between strangers. In the US, honey and sweetie can sound unusually friendly in the South, even with strangers. Context determines the meaning, and you should know that before you address someone in English.

With the Wordy app, you can hear these expressions in real English movies and series, in natural context, with authentic pronunciation and emotion.

Quick overview

Romantic terms of endearment

These expressions mainly live in romantic relationships, and they are the most classic endearments in English-speaking culture. In their research International English, Peter Trudgill and Jean Hannah point out that many of these words come from Old English and Middle English literature, yet they still feel alive and everyday today.

Honey

The word honey literally means honey, and it became an endearment through the association with sweetness. The Oxford English Dictionary traces its endearment sense back to at least the 14th century. Today, in the US it is a very typical at-home form of address, natural in the kitchen, on the phone, and in texts.

“One special feature of English terms of endearment is that expressions tied to sweet tastes are especially durable. Honey and sweetheart remain part of everyday communication even after centuries.”

(David Crystal, The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language, Cambridge University Press, 2019)

Darling

Darling comes from Old English deorling (a very dear person). It is one of the oldest documented English endearments, used continuously from Shakespearean drama to today. It is especially common in British English and often associated with elegant, literary English, although it is also fully everyday now.

Sweetheart

Sweetheart is one of the most beautiful English compounds, it puts sweetness and the heart into one word. It is common in both the United Kingdom and the US. The everyday my sweetheart is especially popular from parents to children, and among older generations as a relationship term.

Babe / Baby

Babe and baby are among the most common relationship endearments in modern English for younger generations. Merriam-Webster dates their endearment sense to the mid-20th century, but pop music and the internet spread them globally. Babe is shorter and more informal, and it is often the more typical form in writing.

Angel

Angel carries the idea of perfection, goodness, and care. It is especially typical when someone did something thoughtful: You remembered! You're an absolute angel. Parents also say it to young children, especially in British and Irish English.

British endearments

In British English, there are a few endearments that many Americans do not use, and they are culturally very specific: people say them to strangers too. This is one of the most surprising differences between American and British English.

Love

The endearment use of love can surprise many English speakers at first. In England, it can be a neutral, everyday form. A London bus driver, a Manchester bakery worker, or a Birmingham cafe server might naturally say: There you go, love. This is not romantic, it is simply one way British friendliness shows up.

Dear

Dear is one of the oldest English endearments, from Old English dēore (dear, valuable). Today it mainly lives as an endearment in British and Irish English. Written Dear... and spoken Yes, dear are two very different registers of the same word.

Pet

The endearment sense of pet is a feature of Northern English dialects. In Newcastle and the Tyne area it is so natural that tourists often react with surprise when someone in a shop calls them pet. Trudgill and Hannah’s International English documents in detail how British regional endearments vary by dialect.

Friendly endearments

English has many endearments that are not romantic, but friendly or collegial. This often confuses people from other cultures.

Babe (between friends)

In the US, babe as a friendly form between friends, mostly among women, is very common. Hey babe, what's up? can feel completely natural between two friends and carries no romantic meaning. This is one of the more distinctive patterns in English-speaking culture, and it helps to understand it to avoid misunderstandings.

Sweetie

Sweetie is a diminutive form of sweet. Friends, couples, and parents all use it. If someone did something nice and you feel grateful, You're a sweetie! is a natural reaction.

Hun

Hun is typical in digital communication: texts, Instagram comments, and Facebook messages instead of honey. Love you, hun! can be a completely natural message between friends. Digital and mobile communication helped bring this shortening into everyday English.

Between parents and children

In English, many endearments mainly live in parent-child relationships. These forms feel warm and playful, and they fit adult relationships less well, although they sometimes appear there too.

Pumpkin

In the US, pumpkin is one of the most popular endearments for children. You hear it less often between adult partners, but it is not unheard of. Pumpkin carries strong emotional associations in America, Thanksgiving, fall decor, and childhood, so it naturally became an endearment.

Sunshine

Sunshine is one of the most poetic English endearments. It says someone warms your day like sunlight. Parents often use it in the morning, but you can also say it to a partner: You are my sunshine, which is also a classic English song.

Button

The English phrase as cute as a button comes from 19th-century America, when small, perfectly shaped buttons symbolized sweetness and tiny charm. Button also works as a standalone endearment for small children, especially in the US.

Little one

Little one is one of the gentlest English parental endearments. You often hear it at bedtime, when comforting a sick child, or in warm parent-child moments. Crystal’s encyclopedia notes that these multi-word endearments are especially typical in English parental speech, compared with languages that rely more on complex diminutive systems.

Situations to avoid

English endearments are not appropriate in every situation. Cultural differences matter a lot here.

Summary table

Practice with real English content

Learning English endearments from a book gives you a good base, but they only start to feel natural when you hear them in real context: in a movie, a series, a loud argument, or a whispered line, with real pronunciation and emotion.

With the Wordy app, you can watch real English movies and series with interactive subtitles. If a scene includes honey or darling, you can tap once to see pronunciation, cultural context, and example sentences, instead of breaking the viewing experience to search a dictionary.

In our guide to the best movies to learn English, you will find specific recommendations, from romantic comedies to British dramas, that help you anchor these expressions in real English.