Pearl Nash
I know what you’re thinking:
If a girl calls you bro, are you friendzoned? After all, it’s such a ‘dude’ expression.
But don’t panic. When your crush calls you bro, it doesn’t mean your fate is sealed.
You might be surprised to hear there are many reasons why a girl might call you bro.
1) She’s trying to annoy you
This first reason is a great way to prove to you that when a girl uses expressions like “bro” or “dude” it doesn’t always mean what you think it does.
A lot of us girls know that guys don’t really want to hear this from us.
Especially when there are romantic undertones in your connection.
We realize it can sting to hear from a girl you are attracted to, have a crush on or are even in a relationship with.
It makes you feel like we’re not sexually attracted to you — and we know it.
That’s why it becomes a subtle form of ammunition when we want to sting.
It can masquerade as being innocent (and sometimes it is) but under the surface, she may know exactly what she is doing.
I’ll give you an example.
When I was younger, I would call my boyfriend “bro” occasionally and it drove him nuts.
So sometimes when he was being a pain in the ass I would “accidentally” call him it, just to piss him off.
2) She’s purposely trying to play it cool
When you have a crush on a guy but you don’t want him to know, then calling him “bro” can feel like a good way of throwing him off the scent.
If she is shy or embarrassed about her feelings, she might be worried they are obvious.
So calling you bro is her way of trying to look cool or nonchalant. She might be intentionally trying to give mixed signals to keep you guessing.
If she calls you bro in front of other people, it could even be that she doesn’t want them to pick up on how she feels.
She may have a friend who likes you, so wants to signal to everyone that she isn’t flirting with you.
3) She wants to see how you react
I want to give you a scenario girls find themselves in. It’s actually a situation I’ve been in more than once.
I’m sure you can relate too, because it’s also no doubt something that happens to guys plenty of times as well.
You are friends with a guy. You sense some chemistry, but you don’t know how he feels about you. You don’t want to make a fool of yourself. You are worried that you could be reading too much into things.
So what do you do? Well, you test the water.
You want to know how he feels, but you also don’t want to give anything away. So you need to try to find ways of getting more of a clear reaction out of him to decipher his feelings.
Calling him bro can be one of them.
She might want to see how you react. It’s a subtle form of provocation, but because it’s a sort of test. She wants to see if it will bother you.
If you call her bro back or start to act like she is one of the guys, she will deduce that is how you see her.
4) It’s part of her image
Despite stereotypical images of what’s feminine and not, the reality is that all girls are different.
They all have unique ways of expressing themselves.
Not every girl is “sugar and spice and all things nice”. Both men and women all have a different mix of feminine and masculine energy.
For some girls, using expressions like “bro”, “man’ or “dude” might just be part of her image.
If it is, then she’s probably not into so-called “girly” things. You’re less likely to find her passively giggling along at your jokes and more likely to find her feeling like one of the gang (even when that group is mainly guys).
It isn’t necessarily a reflection of how she feels towards you. It can be simply an expression of who she is.
5) It’s a habit
Similar to the point above, some girls use certain expressions so often that they say them to pretty much everyone.
She may not even realize that she has said it to you.
The word can mean many things in different contexts. To figure out whether it’s just a habit of hers, pay attention to how she is with other people.
If she calls everyone things like “bro” or “dude” then it doesn’t necessarily mean a lot. So try not to read too much into it.
6) She is clarifying that she only sees you as a friend
There’s no denying that we do sometimes send each other subtle signals that say: I just want to be friends.
And using nicknames or friendly expressions can be one of those ways.
Terms like “buddy”, “bro” and “kiddo” undeniably have very friend zone vibes.
It doesn’t mean there’s no way to get out of the friend zone again, because there are things you can do.
But if you have been getting other signs you are stuck in the friend zone, then this is likely to be another confirmation.
7) She’s picking up on friend vibes coming from you
You might think she is the one giving out the friend vibe when she thinks the same about you too.
Calling you “bro” could be a response to her belief that you just want things to be platonic.
If she doesn’t realize that you’re interested, then she probably doesn’t want to put herself out there and make the first move.
You might be giving off “I’m not interested” cues without even realizing it.
8) She’s teasing you
When you think about it, a lot of flirting can on the surface seem counterintuitive.
Schoolyard teasing is one of those weird ways that we actually show attraction.
Gently poking fun at someone can be our way of showing interest. So if she calls you bro, she may see it as a way to playfully tease you.
If this is the case, you might notice other flirty signs she gives off.
Take notice of things like her body language or the general amount of attention you get from her to figure out if it’s a flirting tactic.
9) She’s super comfortable around you
Calling you bro can signal to you that she feels easy in your company.
She is comfortable around you and trusts you.
Of course, this level of comfort can also signal that she sees you as just a friend.
If she confides in you and turns to you for advice — particularly about other guys — then this term of endearment is more likely to be a platonic one.
10) She’s trying to fit in
We’re all looking for acceptance from our peers.
Using expressions like bro can be as a way of trying to feel included in the group.
Sometimes girls want to feel special somehow, even if that’s by being seen as one of the guys.
She might call you bro because she wants to signal a special connection between you.
Plenty of relationships grow out of friendship and establishing a close and unique bond can help that.
How do you make a girl stop calling you bro?
Ok, so there can be countless reasons for it. But what if a girl calls you bruh? or bro?
Regardless of why, if you’re into this girl then I’m guessing you don’t want to hear it.
So how do you respond when your crush calls you bro?
Turn it around and (playfully) give her a taste of her own medicine
I don’t mean to get moody or snappy with her. This isn’t about annoying her back.
But if you suspect (or want to check) whether a girl is using “bro” to get a reaction out of you, then engage in a bit of playful teasing.
You might jokily say back something like:
“Oh, ok DUDE”
“Sure MAN, whatever you say”
“No problem SIS”
Be sure to keep the tone very light and playful by over exaggerating or maybe even winking.
The idea is to let her see it hasn’t gone unnoticed but to stay in control of the situation by not reacting negatively or letting it get to you.
Shift the energy between you
Regardless of whether you chose to acknowledge what she has said or not, you are going to want to shift that friendship energy between you before it starts to linger.
If she is testing you, unsure of the situation between you or looking for you to lead — you need to step up that flirty energy.
You want her to see you as a potential love interest and not a pal. So step up the flirting, change your body language towards her and show through your behavior that you are interested romantically.
Don’t give off friend vibes if that’s not what you want from her. Or both of you may end up friendzoning each other because you’re both too afraid to make a move.
Get her to see you in a different light
Let’s for a moment jump to the worst-case scenario when a girl you like calls you bro:
That she just sees you as a friend.
You can still get her to start seeing you in a different light.
If you’re always the guy that girls lean on but it never goes further, then maybe you need to be less of a “nice guy” and more of the bad boy that women fall for.
Please note, that does not mean becoming a jerk. Far from it. But a few subtle tricks can get her to start seeing you differently.
For example, sometimes to get a girl’s attention, the best thing you can do is to pull away a bit yourself.
It’s a psychological fact that when we fear we’re going to lose something, we want it 10x more.
This is where “nice guys” get it so wrong. Women have no “fear of loss” with a nice guy… and that makes them pretty unattractive.
Tell her you don’t like it
In an ideal world, we would all better communicate with one another.
And that means rather than playing games we come right out and say how we feel and what we think.
If you don’t like being called bro by a girl, you can always tell her.
You don’t have to make a big deal out of it. Just be honest and to the point. Tell her you would rather she didn’t say that and why.
Final thoughts – making her yours for good
If you’ve been feeling deflated after a girl called you bro, then I hope this article has given you hope.
There is certainly more than just one reason why she would do this. But the key now is to find a way to finally take things to the next level.
Sure, you can ask her to stop telling you bro, and try to flirt with her, but what if I told you there’s an easier and faster way to make her attracted to you?
You see, women are highly tuned into the signals a man’s body is giving off.
What does this mean?
It means that you can use your body language to attract her attention and make her fall in love with you.
Trust me, when I saw Kate Spring’s body language techniques, I was blown away by how right she was and I immediately spread the message. Many of my male friends succeeded with her help.
Watch this excellent free video by Kate Spring.
In her free video, she teaches you how to improve your body language around this girl so that she will be attracted to you immediately.
She will go from calling you bro to calling you babe (or whatever you want to be called) in no time.
