From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary EnglishMaMa /mɑː/, ma noun [countable] informal 1 MOTHERmother What’s for dinner, Ma?2 WOMAN old-fashioned used to mean ‘Mrs’ in some country areas of the US old Ma Harris
Examples from the Corpus
Ma• But of course there were Avon and Ma and Pa and Aggie.• Hey Ma, can I go out with Billy?• I spoke to Ma, who seemed calm.• Here comes the light of the world ... Ma?• I telephoned your Ma yesterday, to hear that things were a bit depressing at the school and in the country generally.• Don't touch dumb hallucinogens like A. Listen to your Ma and Pa, and forget the headster time ever happened.MAMA British English, M.A. American English /ˌem ˈeɪ/ noun [countable] SEC (Master of Arts) a university degree in a subject such as history, languages, or English literature that you can get after your first degreeMA in He did an MA in graphic design at Manchester. Vanessa Clark, MAExamples from the Corpus
MA• The research findings will be published and used in developing an MA course for teachers of religious education.• They had found for Cottle a scholarship to enable him to pursue an MA.• My daughter taught during the day and studied in spare time for her MA.• He incorporated MA of Cambridge in 1670.• He matriculated at Exeter College, Oxford, in 1631, proceeding MA in 1638.Origin Ma (1800-1900) mama 