What does it mean when a woman calls you another man's name

A single wrong name is weak evidence on its own. Look at what else is happening. If she's been warm, asking questions, and making plans, the slip is most likely a mix-up with a friend, a brother, or someone she texts about. If the wrong name is paired with a sudden drop in energy, shorter replies, or vagueness about plans, she may be juggling people or the name may belong to someone she is actually seeing. Also notice whether she caught it herself. People who catch their own slip and laugh tend to be comfortable with you. People who go silent or start backpedaling are usually bothered by being caught. Your job is to read the pattern across a few messages, not to decide from one line.

The reply that works here is short, a little warm, and does not ask her to explain. It gives her an easy exit, something like noting the name in passing and returning to the plan or the topic you were already on. The reply should not reference the name more than once, should not tease her about it hard, and should not ask a question that requires her to account for Marcus. If you want to show a bit of humor, keep it about the situation and not about her. A reply that moves the conversation forward tells her you are not keeping score. A reply that stops to dig into the name makes the slip feel like a confession she now has to manage.

If she laughs it off and the conversation keeps going, you don't need to do anything else. If she apologizes or gets awkward, reply to the apology with one line that makes it clearly okay, then move on. Don't send a second message about it. If she goes quiet after the slip, wait a full day before following up, and when you do, pick up on something unrelated she said earlier. Don't send an apology for something you didn't do, and don't send a question about Marcus. If two or three attempts over a week get no real response, let it end. A woman who keeps you at a distance after a name mix-up has told you where things are.