Article: " You may already be familiar with this term from Latin music and pop culture. This comes from informal terms for "mom," but it's not something you'll want to say to your actual mother. This term is used a lot like you'd use "baby," "honey," or "sexy" in English. It's an affectionate term for your lover or significant other — again, not your mom. The pronunciation here is roughly "mah-mee" (very similar to the English "mommy"). This is also commonly used by children to their mothers, but not in the flirtatious way. " In English, "old lady" is sometimes used as a slang term for someone's wife or girlfriend. You can do the same thing in Spanish with "vieja" (literally "old woman"). However, like in English, this isn't always the most polite way to refer to someone, so you may only want to use it when you're with your friends. The pronunciation here is "vee-AY-ha." The first syllable rhymes with "bee," the second with "play," and the third with "raw." Put the accent on the second syllable ("AY"). " This term is derived from the word for "boss" ("jefe"), but it's also sometimes used as an informal slang term for "mom." This is used both by children for their mothers and by spouses for their wives. The pronunciation here is "HEY-fah." The first syllable rhymes with "play" and the second with "raw." Remember that, in Spanish, js are pronounced like English hs. Adding "-ita" to the end of a word (or "-ito" if you're talking about a man) makes the word have a "cute," "little" quality. It's very similar to putting a "-y" at the end of a word in English (e.g., "mom" vs. "mommy"). This isn't very formal, so you'll want to use it mostly with people you're already comfortable around. If the word ends with a vowel, you will sometimes need to put a c before "-ita" or get rid of the vowel. Here is a good article on Spanish diminutives.  This is pronounced "EE-tah" (almost like "Rita" without the r). Below are a few examples of words from this article turned diminutive: Mamacita ("Mah-mah-SEE-tah") Viejita ("vee-ay-HEE-tah") Jefacita ("hay-fah-SEE-tah")

What is a summary?
Use "mami" as a flirtatious way to say "momma. Use "vieja" for "old lady. Try "jefa" or for something like "governess" or "boss woman. Use "-ita" as a diminutive.