Obsidian Musings

R.I.P. Catherine O'Hara (Mar 4, 1954-Jan 30, 2026)

List of various terms of endearment that can be used in different languages. A lot of them are gender neutral. Now in alphabetical order.

Afrikaans

Lief (love)

Liefie (lovey)

Arabic

Habibi حبيبي (m) (my love)

Habibti حبيبتي (f) (my love)

Ya hayati يا حياتي (my life)

Ya qalbi يا قلبي (my heart)

Ya ruhi يا روحي (my soul)

Hubbi/hobbi حبي (my love)

Catalan:

Estimat (m) /estimada (f) (dear)

Amor/amor meu (love/my love)

Sol (sun) (used more like "és un sol" ('they're a sun'??) and normally used when talking about well-behaved children lmao.

"Reiet meu" could also be used (means 'my little king') (m)

"Carinyo" (from spanish Cariño i guess)

"Bonic (m)/bonica (f)" (means nice or pretty (physically)) ("bonica" in feminine is more common as a term of endearment)

Vida (life) (can also be "videta" (diminutive version))

Bombó (that's like a chocolate sweet lmao)(used normally with women)

Princesa (means princess) (f)

Czech

Zlato (gold, my precious)

Lásko (love)

Miláčku (dearest, little dear)

Danish

Skat (treasure)

Engel (angel)

Smukke (pretty/beautiful)

Elskede/elskling (beloved)

Kæreste (dearest and also used for the term girlfriend/boyfriend)

Snut (sorta like babe, a bit outdated)

Dejlige (wonderful)

Smuksak (beautiful but only for endearment)

Pus (cute pitiful thing)

Pusling (Pus in diminutive)

Musling (mouse diminutive)

Putte[animal] (cuddle[animal of choice], most used is: animal, mouse and pig, but other animals or objects happen)

Kære (loved one)

Allerkæreste (most loved, argumentative)

Basse (cute fat, might come from bear, mostly used for children and men)

Dutch

Schatje (treasure)

Liefje (loved one)

Lieverd (loved one)

Lieveling (loved one)

English

Dear

Pet

Baby

Babe

Honey

Darling

My love

Sunshine

Sweetheart

Sweet cheeks

Prince/Princess

Farsi

Joon/Jaan جان (life)

Azizam عزیزم (my dear)

Asalam عسلم (my honey)

Golam گلم (flower)

Filipino (from various local languages, all gender neutral)

Mahal, sinta (tagalog) (love)

alternatively add "ko" or "aking" to turn it into "my love" (e.g. mahal ko, sinta ko; aking mahal, aking sinta) with "aking" being used more often when talking about the one you love to a 3rd party;

or turn it into a verb (e.g. aking minamahal, kasintahan) to make it "lover"

Paraluman, irog, liyag, giliw (tagalog) (darling) these are older terms though, you won't hear or see them being used unless you're lovers with someone 🌟Extra🌟

Tangi (tagalog) (only one)

Tinatangi (tagalog) (the one i hold dear/the only one for me)

Tinadhana - fated (from the root word "tadhana" meaning fate, which in and of itself should also be a term of endearment and I stand by that)

Hinigugma (bisaya) (beloved) (very old)

Palangga/pangga/langga or "ga" for short and sometimes pagingging (ilonggo) (love) (can also be used platonically or between family members)

Kalasahan (tausug) (beloved) (this is pronounced with an emphasis in the SA syllable (as in kalaSAhan) instead of the LA like in the tagalog word LAsa (which means taste)

Jowa (filipino slang) (significant other/boyfriend/girlfriend)

Bebe, bebe ko, beh, bhe, bhie, bih (filipino slang) (babe)

Lablabs (filipino slang) (literally "love-love" in a heavy filipino accent)

Finnish

Aarteeni (my treasure)

Armaani (my darling (A bit old fashioned to say.))

Höpönassu/höpönassukka/höpsö (silly)

Kalleimpani (my most valued one)

Kulta/kultaseni/kultu/kultsi/kultsipuppeli (gold; darling (These are ordered from least syrupy to most syrupy.)

Mielitietty/mielitiettyni (favourite/my favourite (Formal, usually used when speaking about your loved one to someone else.))

Murmeli (marmot)

Muru/murunen (crumb; honey)

Mussukka (sweetie)

Pikkuinen (little one (Used for children and animals.))

Rakas/rakkaani (love/my love; dear)

Sydänkäpyseni/sydänkäpynen (my heart cone/heart cone; sweetheart)

Söpöliini (cutie)

French

Mon amour (my love)

Mon cœur (my heart)

Chéri (m) / Chérie (f) (darling)

Chou (used like "honey", but directly translates to cabbage)

Mon lapin (my bunny)

Ma vie (my life)

L'/amour de ma vie (love of my life)

Ma poupée (f) (my doll)

Gàidhlig (Scottish)

A chuisle (a hoo-sluh)/ A ghràidh (a ghrah-ee) (my love)

Mo chridhe (moh hree-uh) (my heart)

A chiall mo chridhe (a heel moh hree-uh) (my dearest darling)

Both romantic or otherwise, i.e. they don't have specific romantic connotations.

Leannan (lyen-an) (sweetheart)

M' eudail (may-thal) (darling, romantic)

Luaidheag (luah-yak) (darling, the way a wee old lady talks to a child)

German

Liebling (beloved/favourite)

Schatz (treasure, I would say the most common one between established couples)

Liebes (loved one) (not that romantic, can be used by older people)

Liebster (m) (loved one, bit old-fashioned)

Liebste (f) (loved one, bit old-fashioned)

Hase / Hasi (bunny)

Maus (mouse)

Spatz (sparrow)

Bär / Bärchen (bear)

Engel / Engelchen (angel)

Prinzessin (f) (princess)

Sonnenschein (sunshine)

Kleines (f/n) (little one, can be used in a cute way for women, (while actually being neutral), but can also sound degrading or offensive)

Greek

Αγάπη /Αγάπη μου (love /my love) (the first can also be used among friends, usually between women, but both are very often used in romantic relationships)

Ψυχή μου (my soul) (mostly romantic but can be used by a parent to their kid)

Hebrew

Chaim sheli חיים שלי (my life)

Neshama sheli נשמה שלי (my soul)

Lev sheli לב שלי (my heart)

Ahoovi אהובי (m) (my love)

Ahoovati אהובתי (f) (my love)

Hindi

Meri jaan मेरी जान (f) (my life)

Mera jaan (m/n) (my life)

Rani रानी (f) (queen)

Hungarian

Kedvesem (my dear)

Szerelmem (my love)

Drága (precious)

Édesem (my sweetie)

Kicsim (my little one)

Babám (my baby)

Kincsem (my treasure)

Indonesian

Sayang (to love/love, can be used as 'honey', doesn't have to be romantic)

Cintaku (my love, mostly used romantically)

Irish

A stór (darling)

A stórín (little darling, sweetie. More commonly used for children, but can be used romantically too)

A chroí (heart, you can say "mo chroí" too, that means "my heart")

A ghrá (love)

Aingeal (angel, used both romantically, and for people who've done something nice for you (think "you're a doll"))

A ghrá geal (directly translates to "bright love", but means something more like "honey" or "darling")

Mo ghrá amháin (my one, my one love, my true love)

Mo chailín/mo bhuachaill (my girl/my boy, we say this in place of "girlfriend" or "boyfriend" because there's no proper words for those)

Mo bhean/mo fhear (my woman/my man, like the above, but more seriously, usually said by married couples as a short form of "bean chéile" (wife) and "fear chéile" (husband))

A réaltín (star/little star, used both romantically and to refer to children)

Italian

Tesoro (treasure)

Amore mio (my love)

Cuore (heart)

Vita mia (my life)

Cucciola (puppy/cub) (mostly used for women, but you could say "cucciolo" for men)

Piccola (little one) (mostly for women, "piccolo" would be the male version)

Cara/caro (dear) (now mostly used by grandmas for grandkids but perfect for couples in the past or old couples nowadays

Bimba (f) (child)

Patata/patatina (potato/little potato) (again mostly women when used romantically, "patato/patatino" for men, but they can also be used for pets, babies, your kids or anyone that you find cute)

Tata/tato (short version of papata/patato)

Polpetta/polpettina (meatball/little meatball) (very uncommon, but I've heard it used for girls)

Topolina (little mouse) (very uncommon, but could be used for girls)

Bambola (doll)

Korean

Jagiya 자기야 (honey/baby)

Aegiya 애기야 (baby/little one)

Gongjunim 공주님 (f) (princess)

Wangjanim 왕자님 (m) (prince)

Nae Sarang 내 사랑 (my love)

Gwiyomi 귀요미 (cutie)

Yeobo 여보 (darling, loved one to a spouse)

Malay

Sayang (dear/darling)

Polish

Kochanie (my beloved)

Myszko (f) (little mouse for women romantic, or for young daughters)

Misiu (m) (diminutive bear, romantic for men)

Misiaczku (another form of the above but more intersex)

Słoneczko (diminutive for sun, can be for children but also romantic for women)

Pączusiu (diminutive doughnut, romantic partner)

Bąbelku (bubble diminutive for young children, toddlers or infants)

Duszko moja (very outdated, meaning my soul, for women)

Serce moje (also old school, meaning my heart, unisex)

Gwiazdeczko (diminutive star, for girls and romantic female partner)

Kotek/Kotku (kitten, unisex)

Mała (literally: little (f), for women, can be romantic but also offensive if used by strangers)

Skarbie (my treasure, unisex)

Rybciu (diminutive for fish, little fish, for women)

żabko (diminutive for frog, little frog, for women)

Portuguese

Meu querido (m)/ minha querida (f) (my darling)

Meu amor (my love)

Princesa (f) (princess)

Meu docinho (my sweetheart)

Coração (heart)

Amado (m)/Amada (f) (my beloved)

Meu (m)/ minha (f) mais que tudo (my above overall) Meu tesouro (my treasure)

Paixão (passion)

Meu bem/ meu benzinho (my goodness)

Meu doce/meu docinho (my sweet/ my little sweet)

Brazilian Portuguese

Amor (love)

Querido (m) / Querida (f) (darling)

Bebê (baby)

Meu bem (untraslatable; something between "my dear" and "my treasure")

Meu docinho de coco (my coconut candy - really old slang, nowadays used only for fun)

Patroa (f) (it means a female boss; not ironic not aggressive, but used by men to describe their wives affectionately, eg. "I can't go today, my patroa is waiting for me at home")

Gato/gatinho (m) / gata/gatinha (f) (cat/little cat; if a person is pretty, they are called a "cat")

Minha vida (my life)

Meu xodó (my crush)

Bebê (baby)

Docinho (sweetie)

Chuchu (honey)

Fofura (cutie)

Querida (dear)

Lindinha (beautiful/cutie)

Meu anjo (my angel)

Mozão or Mor (love, more like slang)

Romanian

Iubi (Sweet heart/darling)

Iubirea mea (my love)

Draga mea (f) / Dragul meu (m) (my dear)

Dulceața mea (jam/honey)

Sufletul meu (my soul)

Suflețel (little soul)

Russian

lyubov' moya / любовь моя (my love)

radost' moya / радость моя (joy of mine)

dusha moya / душа моя (my soul)

schast'e moyo / счастье моё (my happiness)

sokrovishche moyo / сокровище моё (my treasure)

solnyshko / солнышко (sunny)

zolotce / золотце (golden)

lyubimyj (m) + lyubimaya (f) / любимый + любимая (beloved)

dorogoj (m) + dorogaya (f) / дорогой + дорогая (darling, dear)

milyj (m) + milaya (f) / милый + милая (dear but in more informal way)

kotik / котик (kitty) malysh / малыш (baby)

zajchik (m) + zajka (f) / зайчик + зайка (bunny)

ptenchik / птенчик (little bird, hatchling)

rybka moya (f) / рыбка моя (my fish)

Serbian

Sreća(o) moja (my happiness)

Zlato moje (my gold)

Srce moje (my heart)

Život(e) moj (my life)

Duša(o) (my soul)

Slovak

Zlato / zlatko (gold)

Láska (love)

Miláčik (bit cheesy, but means my lovely)

Spanish

Cariño (darling)

Bebé (baby)

Corazón (heart)

Mi amor (my love)

Mi vida (my life)

Cielo (sky)

Amor (love)

Swedish

Sötnos (cute nose)

Älskling (darling)

Tamil

Kanmani [cun-mun-ee] (darling)

Turkish

Aşkım (my loved one)

Canım (my love/soul)

Hayatım (my life)

Bebeğim (my baby)

Kocacığım/karıcığım

(my husband/my wife, but in a more endearing way, you can say it to a person you're not married yet but thinking about marrying)

Her şeyim (my everything)

Yaşama sebebim (my reason to live)

Ceylanım (My gazelle, it's a gorgeous creature like cmon)

Güzel gözlüm (My lover with beautiful eyes)

Nazlı yarim (My coy lover)

Kalbimin sahibi (the owner of my heart)

Güzelim/yakışıklım (my beautiful/my handsome)

Kediciğim (my kitty/kitten)

Biriciğim/bi'tanem (my one and only)

Çiçeğim (my flower)

Balım (my honey) (can also say "bal dudaklım (my lover with honey lips)" if you feeling on fire)

Evimin direği (literally meaning "the post of my house," if you say this to a person (usually your husband), you mean to say that he keeps your household/family up, whether financially or with emotional maturity)

Ukrainian

Mostly romantic:

зіронька [zironʹka] (star)

мій світ [miy svit] (my world)

моє життя [moye zhyttya] (my life)

моє серденько [moye serdenʹko] (my heart)

коханий [kokhanyy](m) /кохана [kokhana] (f) (my beloved one)

милий мій [mylyy miy] (m) / мила моя [myla moya] (f) (my dear one)

любий мій [lyubyy miy] (m) / люба моя [lyuba moya] (f) (my loved one)

мій єдиний [miy yedynyy] (m) /моя єдина [moya yedyna] (f) (my only one)

Mostly between friends:

сонце [sontse], сонечко [sonechko] (sun, sunshine)

пташка [ptashka] (f) (birdie)

душа [dusha] (soul)

друг (m)/ подруга (f) моєї душі [druh (m)/podruha (f) moyeyi dushi] (a friend of my soul)

Urdu

Meri jaan میری جان (my life)

Pyaari پیاری (sweetheart)

Shahzadi شہزادی (f) (princess)

Welsh

Cariad (love)

Nghariad (sweetheart)

Let me know more terms of endearment in your languages! And please correct me if I'm wrong somewhere.

Vaelus 🌚 Fan art of Vaelus from Critical Role campaign 4. The character belongs to Ashley Johnson. I wanted to post this on my birthday (January 24th), but after another russian genocidal attack on our energy sector - aimed at freezing Ukrainian civilians in cold darkness - I instead spent my birthday, and the day after, without any electricity or heating. Nighttime temperatures drop far below zero here, this winter is also abnormally cold, even for Ukraine. My electricity has since been partially restored, but there is still no heating in my building. This is also why I barely managed to share just two messy portraits over the entire month of January, despite having plenty of elaborate WIPs nearly complete. There simply hasn’t been an opportunity to finish them. I just want someone to read this and know what is happening here, because this humanitarian disaster somehow isn’t considered relevant enough to reach most news outlets outside my country.

____________

She didn't sneak into occupied France under cover of darkness. She walked calmly to the front door, rang the bell, and smiled.

"I'm looking for a room to rent," she said in perfect German, her manner gentle and unassuming.

The Wehrmacht commander saw exactly what he expected to see: a harmless middle-aged woman, polite and refined. A widow, perhaps. Someone who posed no threat whatsoever.

He had no idea he'd just welcomed a British spy into his home.

Her name was Lise de Baissac, and she was one of Winston Churchill's secret weapons—a Special Operations Executive agent tasked with setting Europe ablaze from within. Every morning she greeted her landlord with warmth and pleasantries. Every night she slipped into the darkness carrying explosives, meeting with resistance fighters and whispering her golden rule:

"We work quietly, or we do not work at all."

He thought she was his tenant. She was his surveillance. She was sabotage personified, living under his roof, studying his routines, gathering intelligence while he slept one room away.

But this audacious arrangement wasn't where her story began.

September 24, 1942. A British Whitley bomber roared through black skies over occupied France. At thirty-seven years old, Lise de Baissac jumped into the void—alone, armed with nothing but false papers and unshakeable resolve.

Her parachute snapped open over enemy territory. She hit the ground hard, hands frantically burying the silk and British equipment that could mean instant execution. Within minutes, she transformed.

Lise de Baissac vanished. "Madame Irene Brisse" appeared—a cultured widow with a passion for archaeology, sketching Roman ruins and cycling through the French countryside.

Perfectly invisible.

But in her bicycle basket lay coded messages, detonators, and maps of German positions. In the shadows, she built the Artist network—recruiting French resistance fighters who grew from dozens to hundreds to thousands. She established her apartment as a safe house for incoming British agents, briefing them, arming them, teaching them how to survive in a land where one mistake meant torture and death.

Her apartment sat one hundred yards from Gestapo headquarters.

The hunters passed her on the street every single day, never recognizing the ghost they walked beside.

Then came betrayal. June 1943. The Prosper network collapsed. Agents screamed in German cellars. Lise had minutes to live or die. She burned every document, smashed her radio, and sprinted across a moonless field to a waiting Lysander aircraft. As the plane climbed into darkness, searchlights clawed at the sky.

She didn't flinch.

London welcomed her home. Safety. Recognition. Rest.

She refused all three.

Eight months later, she parachuted back into France under a different identity. D-Day was coming, and she had work to do. She cycled hundreds of miles carrying weapons disguised beneath vegetables, smiling politely at German soldiers she passed on the road.

"They think women are invisible," she told fellow resisters. "They should fear what they cannot see."

And when she needed lodging in a heavily garrisoned town? She did the unthinkable—she rented that room from a Wehrmacht commander, living under the same roof as her enemy, gathering intelligence over tea and casual conversation, then vanishing into the night to coordinate sabotage operations.

June 6, 1944. Allied forces stormed Normandy beaches while behind enemy lines, Lise's network went to work. Roads exploded. Bridges collapsed. Trains derailed. Fuel depots erupted in flames.

The feared Das Reich Panzer Division should have reached Normandy in three days. It took seventeen—seventeen crucial days bought by bicycle chains, whispered codes, and carefully placed explosives. Days bought by quiet hands the enemy dismissed as harmless.

For two years, Lise operated deep behind enemy lines. Two parachute jumps. Two networks built from nothing. Torture always one mistake away. Execution always one betrayal near.

She survived.

After the war, she received the MBE, Croix de Guerre, and Légion d'honneur. But the French Resistance fighters who worked alongside her gave her the only title that mattered: "She was one of us."

Lise de Baissac quietly returned to civilian life, planting flowers instead of bombs, watering roses where she once watered courage. She never sought applause or recognition. True heroes rarely do.

She lived to ninety-eight—a graceful woman who broke an empire with patience and steel, who proved that courage isn't loud or showy. It's the archaeology enthusiast on a bicycle. It's the polite tenant who smiles at breakfast. It's the person the enemy never bothered to fear.

Until it was far too late.

The Food and Drug Administration is warning the public to not feed dogs Raaw Energy dog food because samples have shown contamination with multiple pathogens that are dangerous to both people and pets. The FDA requested the company recall its implicated products, but the company has not done so. The implicated dog food has tested positive for one or more of the following bacteria: Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella, E. coli O157 and Campylobacter jejuni.

Frozen dog food is contaminated with bacteria that can kill your dog if you feed it to them. And the company refuses to recall their product.

They don't use lot numbers, only manufacture dates. If you have any of these Raaw Energy products in your freezer, with these date codes, throw it out: