be mother
(idiomatic, British) To pour out tea for others.
Definitions
UK
#1·Apr 27, 2026UK
(idiomatic, British) To pour out tea for others.
Ah, here are the cakes and tea; shall I be mother?
Origin: Pouring tea is traditionally the mother's role in a family setting. Origin information sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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UK and Irish slang — Cockney, Scouse, Geordie, Yorkshire, Glaswegian, Brummie, Welsh, West Country, plus Irish English. Centuries of regional dialects feeding into modern British and Irish street talk.
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Other words near "be mother" (B)
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