How to greet friends in English. English phrases and expressions: greeting, appeal, request

All over the world people greet each other. And friends, colleagues, relatives, and neighbors say: “Hello!” or “Hello!” The translation into English of this word is quite simple, but this is only at first glance.

Down with stereotypes!

After all, we don’t always greet each other in the same way; it all depends on the situation and the person we met. The British are no exception. And if some people’s knowledge is limited to just one banal phrase, then this is only the fault of the school curriculum, which provides only a formal version of greeting, and not a natural one. This is the same as an Englishman coming up to you, a Russian, and saying instead of “Hello, how are you?” the phrase “Bread and salt to you!” It's hard to even think how to respond to such a greeting. Let's look at the options that are relevant today.

Standard greetings

Now we will look at several options for how to say “Hello!” in English. However, remember that this must be said with a smile, which for the British is a kind of rule of good manners when communicating.

Hello! or Hi! This is a universal and most popular option, familiar to everyone. This is how they say “Hello!” in English to comrades or well-known people. If you are not a fan of this foreign language, then such knowledge about greetings will be quite enough. However, we are not like that, so we move on.
Good morning (afternoon, evening), which means “ Good morning(day, evening)! This is an equally common way to say “Hello!” in English, but is more complete and formal. This phrase will sound even more interesting if the following nuances are observed: morning is a word that should be used before noon, afternoon - before 18.00, evening - before midnight. However, if you need to greet someone, for example, at a party at one in the morning, then the last word will also come in handy.
There are also phrases: How are you? and almost similar: How are you doing? They are quite formal, suitable for greeting strangers or people you barely know.

More common phrases

If you want to be known as an educated person who knows how to say “Hello!” in English. sound right in each specific situation, then move on.

Options acceptable for very close surroundings

As a rule, most people need a spoken foreign language, so in this case it is not particularly important how “Hello!” is written in English. The main thing is to know when and where to use this or that oral form. Let's move on.

First meeting

Now you know how to say “Hello!” in English, and you can safely use one or another option depending on the situation. However, that's not all! How not to get confused and say hello correctly when you are introduced to someone for the first time? For this case, we recommend using the following phrases:

good to meet (see) you;
nice to meet (see) you;
I am pleased to meet (see) you;
it is a pleasure to meet (see) you.

This way you will let your interlocutor know that you are pleased to meet him. The phrases, as they say, are dry and formal, but they will be useful to you in any case.

Unexpected meeting

Imagine the situation. You are walking down the street, thinking about something, and suddenly you meet that person whom you not only haven’t seen for a long time, but you never thought you’d ever meet just like that. How to say “Hello!” in English? in this case?

Oh my dear God, It is you! We pronounce this phrase something like this: “Lord, is it really you?”
Aahh, where have you been? Translated as “Where have you been?”
Wow, it is so good that I see (meet) you again! - “Wow, how good it is to see (meet) you again!”

What if you don't have time?

Sometimes it happens. You still need to say hello, but you also want to gracefully walk away from a possible subsequent conversation, and do it in such a way as not to offend the person. What to say in such a situation?

Hi, sorry, unfortunately I can’t stop. This means "Sorry, I can't talk right now."
Hi there, I have no time now, but here is my phone number, give me a call. - “Hi, I don’t have any time right now, but here’s my number, call me back.”
Hi, I want to talk, but unfortunately I have to dash. - “Hi, I would love to chat, but I have to run.”

Informal greetings

Can you walk up to your friend and say, “Hi, old man!”? Of course yes. And don’t think that the prim English are incapable of this. Arm yourself with the following phrases and use them to greet close friends.

Conclusion

In this article, we looked at how you can say hello on English language with friends, colleagues, and how to do it correctly and culturally. You can safely replace many of the words in the above phrases with synonyms; it won’t make things any worse, especially if the phrase was already informal. For additional practice, we recommend watching films in English, where you will hear all this more than once and understand where and how to use greetings.

You know very well that you can say hello in English using phrases Hi And Hello . How about making your speech richer and broader? lexicon? The British and Americans themselves also try to use different ways say "Hi! How are you?"

To learn how to pronounce the following phrases correctly, as well as practice real dialogue with a native speaker or professional English teacher, order and take lesson on the ITALKI website.

To greet friends and loved ones (both in speech and via SMS, email, etc.) in spoken English the following phrase is used: "Hey there!" .

You can greet a person in the morning and not too formally using the phrase: "Morning!"

Phrases: "Good to see you!" , "Great to see you!" , "Nice to see you!" use to greet friends and family. By the way, when communicating with colleagues and business partners, such a greeting is also possible. This phrase is especially relevant if you have not seen this person for some time.

Haven't seen a friend, relative, acquaintance or colleague for a long time? Greet like this:

"What's new?"

"What have you been up to all these years?"

"Long time no see."

"Where have you been hiding?"

"It"s been ages since I"ve seen you. How have you been?"

Word "Hey" Only use greetings for people you know well.

Met someone for the first time? Use the phrase: "Hello! It's nice to meet you." or "It's a pleasure to meet you."

There are situations when we meet a person on the street, but we are not going to stop even for a short conversation. However, we want to greet him as we pass by. In such a situation, the appropriate phrase is "How's it going." . The phrase sounds like a question, but the answer is not expected. This is just a greeting.

There are great phrases for greeting close friends, buddies, and relatives. For example: "Hey! What's up?" or "What's going on?"

"Well hello!" a suitable phrase when you haven’t seen a person for a long time and are very surprised by a chance meeting with him.

Ask how life is with your friends/acquaintances, using the following phrases: "How's everything?" , "How are things?" , "How's it going?" , "How do you feel?" , "How do you do?" , "How are you?" .

If you met someone in the morning, the most appropriate phrase is: "Good morning!" . Use day and evening "Good afternoon!" And "Good evening!" respectively. Remember that phrases are official, that is, they are used in conversations with clients, guests of an organization (for example, a hotel), senior management, etc.

Another expression suitable for greeting a colleague, client, boss and at the same time inquiring about the affairs of the interlocutor: "How are you doing today?" .

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Use the following phrases if you meet someone you haven't seen for a long time:

"It has been a long time."

"It"s been too long."

"It"s always a pleasure to see you."

"It's good to see you."

If you are interested in learning English from scratch, register EnglishClass101. There you will find a huge number of ready-made lessons from simple to complex, cultural notes and exercises for practicing the phrases you have learned. Each lesson includes an audio dialogue, its text and a list of words with examples in a pdf file.

A list of grammar and vocabulary topics that will help you build a strong language foundation.

There are many ways to say hello in English. While running, say “hello” to an acquaintance, strike up a conversation at a party, meet an old friend after a long separation, introduce yourself to a business partner. Each situation has its own nuances, and below we will look at them in more detail.

Universal greetings

Hello!	Hello! / Hello!
Good morning!	Good morning!
Good afternoon!	Good afternoon
Goog evening!	Good evening!

These are phrases that can be used both in relation to acquaintances and those you see for the first time.

Note that "Good day" in Britain is more often used as a farewell (quite formal) and is translated as "All the best." "Good night" means " Good night"and is also used when saying goodbye.

Greetings on the go

Saying hello to someone you know is a simple act of politeness. However, there is not always time to stop and talk. If you're in a hurry, you don't have to stop what you're doing, but don't forget to smile when you say hello. You can wave your hand at the same time. Sometimes you meet one person several times in a day. In this case, you can say hello again or just smile.

Friendly greetings

If you know the person well, you can tell him:

Hi!	Hello!
Hey...!	Hello,<имя>!
How's it going?	How are you doing?

Teenagers and young people, as well as just close friends, often use slang among themselves.

Howdy!
Hiya!
What's up?
G"day (Australia)!

Greetings after a long separation

The British value personal space and do not like public displays of affection. However, close friends may well hug when they meet, especially if they haven’t seen each other for a long time. Men sometimes shake hands. In this case we can say:

Business greetings

It is important to observe etiquette at business meetings. Smile and remember to use polite words such as "please" and "thank you." Use appropriate addresses: for men - Mister; for women, Ms is increasingly used (read: ), regardless of marital status. (Mrs and Miss are still used if the woman introduced herself to you as such.)

The handshake is common in most English-speaking countries. When you meet, introduce yourself full name and name the position, for example: Hello, I"m William Jones, sales manager.

To continue the conversation, you can use the following phrases:

Party Cheers

At a reception or party, it is considered polite to say hello to many people. After you've said hello to your hosts and friends, introduce yourself to those you don't know. Introduce yourself and strike up a conversation. Mention how you know the owners. Discuss something related to the party (food, music, decoration). The following questions are useful to keep the conversation going:

Greetings when visiting

If you are visiting a friend, say hello to other people in the house. Introduce yourself to people you don't know. Use the following phrases:

Now that you've become familiar with the basic greeting phrases in English, it's time to listen to them performed by true English ladies and gentlemen.

There are many ways to address a person when meeting, but how to choose the appropriate one in a particular case? Greet the interlocutor, taking into account the nature of communication with him. Contact can be formal (role-based) or informal (personal), and yes, being able to distinguish one communication style from another is a very important point in the process of learning English.

It may seem difficult at first, but over time you will understand which greetings to use and under what circumstances. To help you, YES English courses offer a range of situational, universal greetings in English that can be safely used in formal, informal or non-formal situations.

Universal greetings


	Good morning!
	Good afternoon
	Good evening!

Remember that this does not include “Good day!”, which is translated as “All the best!”, not “Have a nice day!”, and is used when parting. And the phrase “Good night!” has a literal translation of “Good night!” and also means goodbye.

Business greetings

If you imagine a working dialogue in the form of a constructor, then a correct business greeting in English will be the defining element among its other components, the basis of the first impression and further communication.

At customs, at the airport, at a government agency, or in an office, you should observe etiquette and show extreme politeness. It is also necessary to use formal language at business meetings and negotiations, at interviews, when communicating with teachers at the university and with those you do not know well and with older people.

In addition to the universal greetings, there are the following official ways to say “Hello!”:

Official appeals

When addressing a person formally, it is customary to indicate their status before their name.

Woman
		Appeal to a young unmarried girl. (Miss Young)
		If you are not sure whether the girl is married. (Ms. Pfeiffer)
		Used to refer to a woman who has taken her husband's surname. (Mrs. Holmes)
		The most formal way of addressing an older woman or a woman in a respected position.
Man
	Mister	Calling all men. (Mr. Smith)
		The most formal way to address a man. (Sir John Lavery)
Professional titles
	Doctor (Dr. Patterson)
	Professor (Prof. White)

Friendly greetings

Sometimes it seems that the British themselves are tired of ceremony. In any case, modern English is damn rich in friendly greetings. It is advisable to resort to informal language at conferences, talking with friends and colleagues in your free time, as well as with all those whom you already know very well.

The most popular greeting words in English, known to everyone:

They all translate as “Hello!”, but are arranged in order of increasing familiarity.

"Hey!" – the most behind-the-scenes expression, short for the American “Hey, guys!” - "Hi guys!". Used in relation to friends from the same company, people who are close in spirit.

How are you?

Be careful! When answering the questions mentioned above, don’t even think about listing all the things you managed or couldn’t do today. They are unassuming and require primitive answers.

Example answers:

Fine, thank you. And you? - OK, thank you. And you?
Awesome! You? - Amazing! What about you?
Hello, Ann – not bad, thanks! How about you? - Hello, Anya, not bad, thank you! What about you?
Doing well. And how have you been? - Fine! How are you?
Fine. And you? How are you? - Fine! And you? How are you?
Hey dear. How are you? - Hi dear. How are you

Meeting after a long separation

If you have not seen a person for some time and suddenly unexpectedly meet him in a cafe or while walking somewhere around the city, express your feelings using the following expressions.

These greetings are used when you have not seen a person for a long time. With their help, you can resume communication after separation. The question “When was the last time we saw each other?” - “How long have we not seen each other?” is an easy way to start a conversation about what's happened since you last saw each other.

Slang greetings

Imagine that you find yourself in some reality where the local population does not speak in standard, cliched phrases. The reality you are in now is based on play and originality. This is a street subculture, and you are strangers in it. “You don’t go to someone else’s monastery with your own rules” - you will have to adhere to the local rules. Below we are drawing up a rescue plan - remembering English slang and looking for super informal ways to say the word Hello!

	Hey there! Hello!	The most street greeting in English
	Do you hear me, hello!	Merging "hi" and "you". You need to say it in a friendly tone so that it is accepted in your new environment. And it doesn’t matter at all that when you greet, you will look like a wild ninja.
	Hello, is everything okay?	A fusion of “hello” and “how are you?” It turns out two in one: they said hello and asked about business.
	There is no equivalent in Russian. More behind the scenes than the banal “Hi, how are you?”	Merger of "hi" and "alright". Popular in Northern England.
	How are you? / How are you?	Merge “what cheer” - how are you feeling? Used in relation to close friends.
		Popular in Canada and South America. If you say "howdy" outside of these regions you risk being misunderstood.
Morning / Afternoon / Evening!	Good morning/afternoon/evening	The most colloquial and friendly option from “good morning / afternoon / evening”
	As a young life? (the answer is “nagwan” or “nothing is going on” - sucks)	An excerpt from the well-known popular song phrase “what’s going on?”
	How are you?	Short for "what's up?"
	Is it hard, bro?	Super informal slang. Short for “easy bruv” / “how are you, brother” - how are you, brother?
		Borrowing from the USA. Well, remember, right, street rappers? And in Russia, the characteristic “Yo!” is popular among them.

Street slang forms an important part of modern spoken English. And in this style one can highlight greetings for people who have met after a long separation.

As a gift to those who read to the end, we offer you to look at a selection of famous greetings from English films and TV series.

The most favorite greeting of typical fans of supernatural series. (“The Vampire Diaries” - “The Vampire Diaries”)

It seems that Ben Geller, who plays Ross, should have been presented with an acting award for one of his most depressing “Haai!”, which amused more than one generation of viewers.

P.S. Don't be like Ross!

(“Friends” - “Friends”)

Do you remember the handsome Joey Tribbiani and his famous “How are you doing?”

(“Friends” - “Friends”)

Most recently, this song was at the top of various charts. To date, the video has 2,346,309,814 views!

Let's sing a modern hit together and say hello to Adele.

“Hello, it’s me” (“Hello, it’s me”).

Oh, sing along with Adele!

Afanaskina Ekaterina Vladimirovna - expert of the educational and methodological department
Center for Foreign Languages "YES".

In our culture, how we greet someone depends on who they are. We don’t say “Hello!” to our boss, or “Hello!” to a close friend. It's the same in English-speaking countries. Well-known word hello- far from it the only way say hello Let's quickly get to know the others.

Formal greetings in English

Let's start with the most popular formal English greetings. These are the words and phrases with which you can greet work colleagues, business partners, officials, etc.

1. Hello! - Hello!

A universal option. Suitable for greeting unfamiliar people in an informal setting.

– Hello, Mr. Simpson! It's good to see you. - Hello, Mr. Simpson! Glad to see you.
– Oh, hello Mr. Robertson! It's nice to see you too. - Hello, Mr. Robertson! Me too.

Word hello can also be used to attract the attention of a person who has said something wrong or made a mistake. To do this, it is distinguished by intonation.

Oliver asked the girl if she"d just come and she responded, "Hello, I"ve been here for an hour." - Oliver asked the girl if she had just arrived, and she replied: “Actually, I’ve been here for an hour.”

2. Good morning/afternoon/evening. – Good morning/afternoon/evening.

Obviously, all these phrases are used depending on the time of day.

Good morning everyone, and welcome to Boston! – Good morning everyone, and welcome to Boston!

3. It’s nice to meet you. / Pleased to meet you. - Nice to meet you.

This option is perfect for greeting someone when you first meet them.

– It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Green. I've heard a lot about you. - Nice to meet you, Mr. Green. I've heard a lot about you.
– It’s nice to meet you too, Mr. Olsen. “It’s nice to meet you too, Mr. Olsen.”

When meeting for the first time in high society, the formal British version, familiar to everyone, is used “ How do you do? (Hello). In other cases, this expression will be inappropriate, as it is considered outdated.

–Mr. Miller, may I introduce you to my friend Albert Bailey? - Mr. Miller, may I introduce you to my friend Albert Bailey?
– How do you do, Mr. Bailey? - Hello, Mr. Bailey.
- How do you do. - Hello.

4. It’s nice (lovely, great) to see you again. - Glad to see you again.

I am glad to see you. - Glad to see you.

These phrases are usually used to greet people you have been introduced to.

– This is my friend Scarlett. You've met her here a previous time. - This is my friend Scarlett. You met her here last time.
– It’s good to see you again, Scarlett. – Glad to see you again, Scarlett.

5. How are you doing today? - How are you?

This question can accompany a greeting in a formal setting.

– Mrs. Robinson, let me introduce you to my business partner Mr. Brown. – Mrs. Robinson, let me introduce you to my business partner, Mr. Brown.
– It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Brown. How are you doing today? - Nice to meet you, Mr. Brown. How are you doing?

6. How have you been? - How are you?

This question is asked to find out what’s new with a person you haven’t seen for a long time. When answering, you need to tell a little about your life recently.

– How have you been? - How are you?
- Pretty good. Work"s been busy. I"ve been working non-stop lately. - Pretty good. A lot of work. I've been working non-stop lately.

Informal greetings in English

Now let's look at the options that can be used to greet friends, good acquaintances, relatives, etc.

1. Hello there! - Hello!

A popular option for greeting people you know in an informal setting.

- Hello there! What a nice day today. - Hello! What a good day today is.
– Oh hey! It seems like the spring has finally come. - Hello! It seems that spring has finally arrived.

2. How"ve you been? - How are you?

A shortened version of the formal expression “ How have you been? used to find out how someone you haven't seen for a long time is doing.

- Hey, bro! - Hello my friend!
– Oh hey! How've you been? - Oh, hi! How are you?

3. Hi! / Hey! - Hello!

A universal greeting that appeared around the 15th century.

– Hi Lewis. How are you? - Hello, Lewis. How are you?
– Oh hi, Ben. - Oh hi, Ben.

4. How are you? / Are you all right? / Are you okay? - How are you?

Under no circumstances should you give a detailed answer to these questions, and certainly don’t start talking about your problems. It's better to answer like this: Very well, thank you. And you? (Very good, thank you. How about you?) or I'm fine, thank you. What about you? (I'm fine, thank you. How are you?).

– Hey Jason! How are you? - Hello, Jason! How are you?
– Hey, Addie! Very well, and you? - Hello, Eddie! Very good, and you?

5. What's up? / What's cracking? - How are you?

This is a very informal greeting. You can only greet your peers and those younger than you this way. 99% of the English-speaking population answers it with the word nothing(Nothing). However, if a person threw out the phrase “ What's up” Just passing by, you don’t need to answer.

– What's up, Craig? - How are you, Craig?
– Nothing. - Never mind.

6. How's it going? / How are you getting on? - How are you?

Suitable for greeting in almost any informal situation. You can answer as follows: Good(Okay) or I'm doing well(I'm fine).

- Hi, George. How's it going? - Hi, George. How are you?
– Hi, Michael. Good. - Hi Michael. Fine.

7. How's everything? / How are things? / How's life? - What's up?

This is how you can greet people you already know. The answers could be “ Good” (Okay) or “ Not bad" (Not bad). If the situation allows, you can start a small talk and exchange the latest news.

– How’s life, Jane? - How are you, Jane?
– Not bad, Chris, and you? - Not bad, Chris, what about you?
– Well, I went to Fiji a week ago. – I flew to Fiji a week ago.
– Oh really? Cool! - Is it true? Great!

8. What's new? / What's good? / What's happening? / What's going on? - What's new?

This option is very close in meaning to the previous one. When answering, you can briefly talk about something new and interesting from your life, or limit yourself to words nothing(nothing) or not much(nothing special).

– Hey, Anna! What's up? - Hello Anna! What's new?
– Not much... What about you? - Nothing special... What about you?
– Oh, I’m just back from London. – Oh, I just returned from London.

9. It’s been ages (since I’ve seen you). / It's been a while. - Long time no see.

Good to see you. / Long time no see. - Glad to see you.

These expressions can be used to greet work colleagues, friends or family members whom you have not seen for a long time.

– Good to see you, Steve! It's been a while. – Good to see you, Steve! Long time no see.
– Same here, Alex. How've you been? - Me too, Alex! How are you?

10. Hey! There she is! - Finally! Here you are!

This is how you greet a person if you have been waiting for him and are very happy to see him. When pronouncing a phrase, you should highlight the word with intonation there.

- Hey! There she is! My lovely niece. Haven't seen you in weeks. - And here you are! My favorite niece. I haven't seen you for several weeks.
– Hey, aunt Alice! - Hello, Aunt Alice!

11. Hiya! - Hello!

This greeting was formed by combining two words hi And you in the north of England. Used to greet only people you know well. American version of the phrase - heya.

– Hiya, Pete, how are you doing? – Hello, Pete, how are you?
– Hi, Jessie! I'm great! - Hello, Jesse! I'm fine!

12. Alright? - How are you? / Hello.

This is how in Britain those who see each other regularly, under the same circumstances, greet each other. For example, at school or at work. Most often the answer is not expected.

Mark (has just come to work and sees Karen), “Alrigh’?” – Mark (just arrived at work and sees Karen): “Hi.”
Karen, “Alright” – Karen: “Hi.”

13. How Do? - How are you?

This greeting option is also popular in England, in the north of the country. It can be used in a store, bar or any other place where you come for a specific purpose.

Sam (entering the shop), “How to do?” – Sam (enters the store): “How are you?”
A shop-assistant, “Aye not so bad. What can I get for you?” – Seller: “Not bad. How can I help?"

14. Yo! - Hello!

This is a very familiar greeting. Entered into common vocabulary from hip-hop culture. Nowadays it is used only between close friends, most often in a humorous form.

- Yo, Josh! How are things? - Hello, Josh! How are you?
- Yo, dude! - Hi dude!

Here are a few phrases that will come to your aid if you suddenly meet someone you know, and there is absolutely no way to stop chatting.

Oh, hi there! Sorry, I"m a bit pushed for time. – Oh, hello! Sorry, I’m a little late.

Hello there! Look, I"m on my way to work. Maybe catch up with you again soon. – Hello! Listen, I’m running to work. Maybe we’ll meet again soon.

Hey! I would love to stop and chat, but I really have to dash. - Hello! I'd love to stop and chat, but I really have to run.

English greetings during holidays

During holidays in the English-speaking world, ordinary greetings are replaced with congratulatory ones. Here are some of them:

Merry Christmas! - Merry Christmas!
Happy New Year! – Happy New Year!
Happy Thanksgiving! – Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Easter! - Christ is risen! / Easter!

You can respond to each such congratulation with the phrase “ Thank you! You too" (Thank you, same to you).

So you have met the most popular greetings in the English language. Next, we suggest watching a video from a British resident, Anna. In it, Anna, a professional actress, will demonstrate the correct pronunciation of greeting phrases.

This is where our acquaintance with the most popular English greetings ends. We hope that the appropriate use of each of the options presented in the article will make your English speech more natural and relaxed.

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