"Do you feel like saying "ein Ex-Freund von mir" still carries this boyfriend connotation" Native-speaker, but I honestly cannot make my mind up about this. "

"Do you feel like saying "ein Ex-Freund von mir" still carries this boyfriend connotation" Native-speaker, but I honestly cannot make my mind up about this. "The latter is clear to me, but I could see myself saying the former and thereby mistakenly suggesting a past relationship. (Non-native speaker.) On the other hand, it's clear that "eine Ex-Freundin von mir" means ex-girlfriend. Maybe I'll stick to "ehemaliger Freund" or just use "Kumpel" instead of Freund(-in) altogether. Otherwise people will think I've dated everyone I know." Hits the nail on the head. Your feeling of the language is excellent.