History Main / NewParentNomenclatureProblem

* In An Allstate commercial within their Mayhem campaign, Mayhem is playing someone's son, who [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1LEzmJtFGo recklessly mows with a riding lawn mower]] causing rocks to eject from it and break windows in their house and car while distracted listening to a radio call of a football game. One of his lines suggests the father is actually their stepfather.

* In An ''Adverting/{{Allstate}}'' commercial within their Mayhem campaign, Mayhem is playing someone's son, who [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1LEzmJtFGo recklessly mows with a riding lawn mower]] causing rocks to eject from it and break windows in their house and car while distracted listening to a radio call of a football game. One of his lines suggests the father is actually their stepfather.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheClevelandShow'', Roberta and Rollo refer to Cleveland by his first name, while Junior more respectfully refers to Donna as "Miss Donna".

* Natalie's children in Creator/CatherineAnderson's ''Bright Eyes'' are officially adopted by Zeke Coulter and have no problem seeing him as "dad" due to their biological father not having been the best guy around. Isaiah even mentions this to Laura when the kids make an appearance in ''My Sunshine''. On the flip side, as much as the Harrigan children love their new stepmother Dee Dee they never call her "Mom" or any variant. Dee Dee, who helped raise the Harrigan kids as their housekeeper for years before she married their father, is unfazed by this, knowing how much their mother meant to the family.

Compare/Contrast YoureNotMyFather, HappilyAdopted, and YouCalledMeXItMustBeSerious. May be related to lingering feelings from a ParentWithNewParamour situation.

* Averted in ''Series/SonsOfAnarchy". When we meet Jax and Clay, it is clear that Clay has been married to Jax's mother, Gemma, for many years. However, despite the fact that Clay often calls Jax "son", Jax always refers to Clay by his name. It's possibly due to the fact that by the series' timeline of when JT, Jax's biological father, died, Jax was already a teenager and had known Clay for years as JT's best friend. Later, when Jax and Clay are more often at cross purposes, Jax begins to correct people when they refer to Clay as his father and he explicitly tells Clay to stop calling him "son."

* In ''Series/{{Roseanne}},'' David lives with the Conner family for a long time, during which he calls Roseanne "Mrs. Conner." In one episode, he admits to thinking of her as his mom, which she finds sweet; he asks if she'd like him to actually call her "Mom," and after a moment of thought, Roseanne quips that she'd rather her own kids call her "Mrs. Conner."

A character is taken in by a ParentalSubstitute of some sort, usually of a more permanent variety such as an official foster parent or step parent, and they're considering calling them "mom" or "dad" despite the lack of biological connection. Agreeing to call them "mom" or "dad" will lead to a perceived level of closeness than simply calling them by their first name, but also may lead to the protagonist feeling like they're shunning their birth parents, [[YouAreNotMyFather who are definitely not the person raising them]]. It typically causes the protagonist tons of {{angst}} and is a handy device for exploring the familial dynamics between the characters. This can also something happen with estranged biological parents who have recently re-entered their kid's life.

* One of the character in ''Anime/DeathParade'' regrets that he refused to refer to his step-mother as "mom" when he was alive.

* In [[https://www.fanfiction.net/u/2696457/secooper87 secooper87's Adventures of a Line Hopper series]] The alternate timeline daughter of [[Series/DoctorWho the Doctor]] and [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer Buffy Summers]] calls the Doctor her "father" as, biologically that's what he is to her, but calls the inter-dimensional being that raised her "Dad" and is very adamant the two terms are ''not'' interchangeable. After she begins to be raised by the main-universe Buffy, she calls her "Mom" although had to remind herself to call her that for sometime. A lot of times she'll start to call out for "Buf-I mean-Mom"

* In adel aka's [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEG18Z1mSWs video]] about rewriting Yang in ''RWBY'', he gave her this problem as a driving element of her character. Yang's biological mother Raven walked out when she was a baby, with Yang's step-mother Summer being the only mother she's ever known. When Yang was very young, Summer died. Yang has always been [[TellMeAboutMyFather curious]] about Raven but her father refuses to tell her. Eventually, he promises to tell her if she becomes a huntress. Throughout her life Yang has felt uncomfortable calling Summer her mother, which upsets her half-sister Ruby. Yang comes to terms with Summer as her mother after seeing a heartfelt video that Summer made for her. Upon meeting her cold biological mother Raven, Yang [[YouAreNotMyFather disowns her]] by stating that her mother is Summer.
* In ''Fanfic/TurningTables'', when Pepper adopts Peter, he is upfront about how he does not intend on calling her "mom". She respects that as long as he acknowledges that she is his guardian. Overtime however, he resorts to calling her "mom" to make it easier on Morgan, who is an infant and only knows her as "mom". As they grow closer, Peter starts to address her as "mom", if not as a habit.

* In ''Anime/WhenMarnieWasThere'', Anna calls her foster mother "auntie". She began addressing her this way due to a belief that her mother was simply using her for money. Towards the end she addresses her as "mother" after realizing that her family doesn't take care of her just for the foster care money.

* In ''Boy'', the title character initially addresses his estranged father Alamein as "Dad," but Alamein asks his not too, saying that it feels weird. Instead he suggests that Boy call him "Shogun." (Alamein may be a deadbeat and an aspiring gang leader, but he is also a ''massive'' dork.)

* ''Series/TheBradyBunch'': Greg, Peter and Bobby call their stepmother, Carol, "Mom" immediately; likewise with Marcia, Jan and Cindy, they address stepfather Mike as "Dad." (Indeed, the concept of stepmother and stepfather was downplayed, only referred to in a couple of episodes during the first season, and by the end of that first season, it's as though they had always known Mike and Carol as "Mom" and "Dad.")

** Luke's SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute/adopted sister Sky on the other hand, calls Sarah Jane by her first name. The series was [[CutShort canceled due to the untimely death of the lead actress before it could be further explored as to why]].

* ''Series/DiffrentStrokes'': When Willis and Arnold start living with the man who eventually adopts them, they call him Mr. Drummond. They eventually ask his permission to call him Dad, which he gives (even before he officially adopts them). The explicitly do ''not'' call him Papa, which was their name for their biological father.

* In ''Series/SirensUS'', after Cash starts dating Hank's mom, he tries to get Hank to start seeing him as a father figure, suggesting several possible affectionate term that he could use.

* A variant on ''Series/GilmoreGirls''--Rory's dad has been somewhat flighty in his involvement, and now she's meeting ''his'' parents for the first time since she was a baby. Right before they come in, she wonders what she's supposed to call them--Grandma and Grandpa? Mr. and Mrs. Hayden? Their first names? It doesn't really matter, since it turns out they're disinclined to like her no matter what she tries.
* Kutner from ''Series/{{House}}'' had his parents killed in front of him when he was six, and then was adopted by a wealthy family. Given the circumstances they're understanding that he prefers to call them by their names and don't push the subject. Eventually after a couple of years he started referring to them as "Mom and Dad" and even [[HappilyAdopted changed his last name.]]

A character is taken in by a ParentalSubstitute of some sort, usually of a more permanent variety such as an official foster parent or step parent, and they're considering calling them "mom" or "dad" despite the lack of biological connection. Agreeing to call them "mom" or "dad" will lead to a perceived level of closeness than simply calling them by their first name, but also may lead to the protagonist feeling like they're shunning their birth parents, [[YouAreNotMyFather who are definitely not the person raising them]]. It typically causes the protagonist tons of {{angst}} and is a handy device for exploring the familial dynamics between the characters.

* ComicBook/{{Batman}} has four adopted kids and one biological kid and all of the former just call him by his first name. He also calls his parental figures Alfred and Dr. Leslie Thompkins by their first names.

* ''Film/PicturePerfect'': While we never see Becca and her stepmother interact, Becca is obviously resentful since she calls her "the step-monster."

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheDragonPrince,'' it's clear that [[ClassicalAntiHero Callum]] and his stepfather, [[GoodParents King Harrow]], think of each other as family, but neither seems quite able to spit it out, and Callum addresses him as "My King" or "the King," which his stepbrother [[CheerfulChild Ezran]] even comments on. He [[YouCalledMeXItMustBeSerious actually does call out "Dad!"]] just before [[spoiler:Harrow is murdered]].

* A funny example in a ''Advertising/Progressive'' commercial; a single mother introduces Jamie to her sons. saying he'd be helping out from now on. She meant as an insurance agent, but they get the wrong idea and one of them says he's not calling Jamie dad.

* ''Film/ShaunOfTheDead'' has the recurring line, "[[InsistentTerminology He's not my dad, he's my stepdad"]] from Shaun about his stepfather Phillip. It stems from Shaun viewing Phillip as a JerkAss, rather than the JerkWithAHeartOfGold he is. [[spoiler:Before turning into a zombie Phillip tells Shaun he's always loved him and Shaun finally acknowledges Phillip as his dad]].

* In ''Film/{{Halloweentown}}'' Marnie's widowed mom, Gwen, meets the mayor of Halloweentown, Kalabar, and it's clear from their interaction that the two used to date. Marnie is currently angry at her mother, so she keeps bringing this up, at one point quipping that if the two get married, she's not calling him "Dad."
* In ''Film/{{Enchanted}},'' [[PrinceCharming Edward]] addresses his WickedStepmother as "Mother" the first time he sees her, but switches to "[[FirstNameBasis Narissa]]" once he realizes her [[BigBad true colors]].

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* In ''WesternAnimation/TheClevelandShow'', Roberta and Rollo refer to Cleveland by his first name, while Junior more respectfully refers to Donna as "Miss Donna."
* Averted in ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb'', where Phineas and Candace refer to their stepfather, Lawrence, as "Dad." Ferb [[TheQuietOne when he talks that is]], refers to Linda as Mother.

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* A heart-breakine example in ''Manga/{{Monster}}''; a OneShotCharacter who married a widow was struggling for his stepson to accept him as a father. In the episode, the stepson finally called him dad for the first time as he was leaving for work. Unfortunately, he ended up being Johan's latest victim.

* A heart-breakine example in ''Manga/Monster''; a OneShotCharacter who married a widow was struggling for his stepson to accept him as a father. In the episode, the stepson finally called him dad for the first time as he was leaving for work. Unfortunately, he ended up being Johan's latest victim.