What does it mean when a guy gives you a nickname?

If a certain guy has recently been calling you by a nickname then you’re probably wondering why and what it might mean.

This post will help you understand why he has given you a nickname and why other guys might do it in the future.

So, what does it mean when a guy gives you a nickname? A guy might give you a nickname because he likes you especially if he only does it with you, it is a flattering nickname and he shows signs of attraction around you. It could also be that he considers you a friend, he is being mean, he is doing it as a power-play or that he thinks that you like it.

Since there are a number of reasons why a guy might give you a nickname it is important to consider the context of how he does it and the body language that he shows around you.

By doing so you will be able to get a better understanding of why he calls you a nickname and the way that he feels about you.

Reasons why a guy will call you a nickname

Each of the different reasons why a guy will call you a nickname will likely come with a number of clues in his behavior and body language when he is around you.

Below, I will mention a number of reasons why a guy will call you a nickname and the body language and behavior signs that you can expect to see with them.

He is attracted to you

If the nickname that he calls you is not a mean one and he changes his behavior and body language around you in a positive way then it would be likely that he gave it to you because he is attracted to you.

The reason why giving you a desirable nickname could suggest that he is attracted to you is that it would suggest that he wants you to feel better around him and that he wants you to enjoy being around him.

If he did give you a nickname because he is attracted to you then it would be likely that he would show signs of being attracted to you in his body language and behavior when he is around you.

These signs could include:

• Mirroring your own body language (examples include standing with the same stance as you, smiling like you, showing the same facial or hand gestures or talking at a similar pitch)
• Looking to see if you are also laughing when he is
• Holding prolonged eye contact with you
• Touching you a lot and making up reasons to touch you
• Having more dilated pupils when he sees you
• Touching your feet with his feet
• Pointing his feet at you
• Standing closer to you when talking to you than he does with other people
• Talking to you with a deeper voice than he does to other people
• Sitting or standing with a straighter posture when he sees you
• Adjusting his hair or clothing when he sees you
• Uncrossing his arms when he sees you
• Staring at you then quickly looking away or smiling when you notice
• Looking at your lips
• Watching you when you’re talking to other men your age
• Getting anxious when you’re talking to other men
• Blinking more frequently when he is with you
• Sticking around when you’re with other men
• Making plans based on your schedule
• Asking your friends about you

He considers you a friend

The reason why he calls you a nickname could be that he considers you a friend.

This would be more likely to be the reason if he also calls his other friend’s nicknames and if he shows the same body language around you as he shows around them.

The body language that he shows is likely to be positive looking so he would likely smile at you, raise his eyebrows and show his palms. However, he would be less likely to show a number of the signs of attraction mentioned above such as holding prolonged eye contact, getting defensive when other men are around, getting anxious when you’re with other men and looking at your lips.

It could also be the case that he does call his other friends nicknames but he is still attracted to you. If that is the case then it would be likely that he would interact with you in a slightly different way to his other friends and he might pay slightly more attention to you when you are around. He would also be likely to show a number of the signs of attraction mentioned above.

He is being mean

The reason why he calls you a nickname could be that he has a nasty personality.

If the nickname that he calls you is one that is mean then it could be the case that he gets pleasure from making other people feel bad. If that is the case then it would be likely that he would be mean to other people at times as well. It would also be likely that he would care a lot about how people perceive him.

He might also do it in order to be more popular. That is because people will sometimes make fun of people in front of others in order to make it seem like they are higher up socially. Again, if that is why he does it then it would be likely that he would care a lot about how people perceive him he would also likely only say it when other people are around that he wants to impress,

He’s doing it as a power-play

The reason why he calls you a nickname could be that he is trying to show that he has the power to do so.

If that is why he does it then it would be likely that he would say it in front of other people, he would likely show it with a deeper voice and it would likely have a condescending tone to it.

If he does call you a nickname as a power-play then it would be likely that he would show dominating signs when he is around you and other people.

These signs could include:

• Telling people to do things
• Standing in people’s personal space
• Holding prolonged eye contact with people
• Squinting when looking at people
• Having tight lips when people are talking
• Talking over people
• Disagreeing with people
• Taking up lots of space in the way that he stands and sits
• Putting his hands and feet on things that are not his
• Touching people often

He wants to see how you’ll react

The reason why he called you a nickname could be that he wanted to see how you would react.

The reason why he wanted to see how you would react could be that he was doing it as a sort of power-play to see if he would be able to control you. If that is why he did it then it would be likely that he would show the signs of being dominating mentioned above.

It could also be that he is attracted to you but he is not sure whether or not you are attracted to him and he wanted to see if you would react positively. If that is the case then it would be likely that he would show signs of attraction when he is around you in his body language.

He thinks that you like it

The reason why he calls you a nickname might be that he thinks that you like it.

This would be more likely if he saw someone else say it to you or if you reacted positively to him saying it to you when he first said it.

If that is the case and you don’t like it then it would be necessary for you to tell him to stop and if he still doesn’t then it would be an option to avoid him if possible.

Consider the type of nickname that he gives you

When trying to understand why he calls you a nickname it would be helpful to consider the type of nickname that he calls you.

If he calls you one that is nice or sexual in nature then it would be more likely that he is showing that he is attracted to you.

Whereas, if he calls you a mean nickname that he knows that you probably don’t like then it would be more likely that he has a mean personality or that he does it as a power-play.

Consider how he reacts to seeing you

When trying to understand why he calls you a nickname and the way that he feels about you it would be helpful to consider the way that he reacts to seeing you.

If he reacts to seeing you in a noticeable way then it would be a strong sign that he has positive or negative feelings about you.

If he reacts to you in a positive way by doing things such as:

• Sitting upright
• Smiling
• Raising his eyebrows
• Uncrossing his arms
• Adjusting his hair or clothing
• Holding eye contact with you
• Positioning himself to be closer to you
• Making space for you
• His pupils dilate

Then it would be likely that he calls you a nickname because he is attracted to you.

Whereas, if he reacts to you in a negative way by doing things such as:

• Crossing his arms
• Squinting
• Tightening his lips
• Tensing his jaw
• Facing his feet away from you
• His pupils constrict

Then it would be more likely that he calls you a nickname for a bad reason especially if it is one that he knows that you don’t like.

Consider how he interacts with other people

When trying to understand how he feels about you and why he calls you a nickname it would be helpful to compare how he interacts with you and how he interacts with others.

If he also calls other people nicknames and he shows the same body language around them as he shows around you then it would be more likely that he calls you a nickname because he is being friendly.

Whereas, if he only says it to you and he changes his behavior and body language around you then it would be more likely that he is either being dominating, mean or that he is attracted to you depending on how he changes his body language.

Think about multiple aspects of his body language

When you’re thinking about the body language that he shows around you it’s important to consider body language clusters.

This means that it is important to look for multiple signs in his body language that all suggest the same meaning.

This is because he might show a single body language sign due to a wide variety of different reasons. This makes it difficult to accurately assess why he is showing it.

Whereas, if he shows multiple body language signs that all suggest the same thing then it would be more likely that he is showing them for that specific reason.

Think about when and where he says it

Considering the timing of when he calls you a nickname would also be a useful thing to do.

If he only says it when you are both alone together then it would be much more likely that he says it because he is attracted to you especially if it is a positive nickname.

Whereas, if he only says it in front of other people then it would be more likely that he is either doing it as a power-play or to be more popular or both and it would be likely that he would show dominating type signs in his body language.

If he says it at random times when you’re alone together and when you’re with other people then it would be necessary to consider if it’s a good or bad nickname and if he shows positive or negative body language around you.

Consider your relationship with him

It would also be useful to consider the type of relationship that you currently have with him.

If he is your friend then it would be more likely that he wants to be more than just friends with you or that he calls all of his friend’s nicknames.

Whereas, if he is a guy that you do not talk to often then he might be doing it as a power-play if he shows signs of it in his body language and he might be showing that he is attracted to you if it’s a positive nickname.

Related

What does it mean when a guy gives you a cute nickname? It would be likely that he is attracted to you and you should consider if he also shows signs of attraction in his body language. It could also be the case that he calls all of his friend’s nicknames in which case he would likely call other people nicknames when you’re with him and he would show the same body language around them as he does around you.