If you’re just getting started with Chinese<\/a>, \u4f60\u597d is basically the first phrase that you’ll learn in Chinese class.<\/p>\n You should note, however, that it’s not often used with familiar people like friends or colleagues. As mentioned above, it’s not actually used frequently at all. It’s kind of awkwardly formal.<\/p>\n \u60a8\u597d is the respectful form of \u4f60\u597d. It’s used with people whom you want to express a greater level of respect towards, such as a teacher. In fact, \u60a8\u597d is used and appropriate in such situations!<\/p>\n If you’re speaking to a group, you can use this Chinese greeting. You’d be likely to hear \u5927\u5bb6\u597d at the beginning of a lecture or talk you’re attending, or even at the beginning of many Chinese-language YouTube videos<\/a> and podcasts<\/a>.<\/p>\n Did you hear the resemblance to “hello”? That’s because \u54c8\u7f57 is actually a loanword from English! This is fairly commonly used, especially among younger generations.<\/p>\n Yep\u2014this is another loanword from English. Again, this is used more among younger Chinese speakers, and most likely with friends.<\/p>\n This is a casual way to greet someone in the morning. It’s pretty much used the exact same way as it is in English, so you can’t go wrong with this one (unless it’s too late in the day, of course).<\/p>\n This is the full greeting for “good morning.” While \u65e9 sounds a little more casual, you can pretty much use these two terms interchangeably.<\/p>\n \u4e0b\u5348\u597d is quite straightforward. This is a good way to greet people in the afternoon.<\/p>\n By the time it gets dark outside, you can switch from \u4e0b\u5348\u597d to \u665a\u4e0a\u597d to wish people a good evening.<\/p>\n The first time someone greeted me with this phrase, I responded that I unfortunately had already eaten, but I would be happy to eat with them some other time. They burst out laughing.<\/p>\n When someone asks this, they’re not asking you out to lunch. This Chinese greeting is a way to lightly express that you care about the other person.<\/p>\n Much like the expression “How are you?” in English, you don’t need to answer with a long description of the sandwich you just had\u2014they’re just asking it to be polite and acknowledge you.<\/p>\n Instead, you can just say: \u5403\u4e86\uff0c\u4f60\u5462\uff1f<\/strong> (ch\u012b le, n\u01d0 ne?)<\/em> \u2014 “I’ve eaten, how about you?”<\/p>\n That pretty much suffices.<\/p>\n This is basically the literal equivalent to “How are you?” in English.<\/p>\n You can actually reply with just a noise! Saying \u55ef<\/strong> (en)<\/em> implies you’re doing fine.<\/p>\n You can also say either \u6211\u5f88\u597d<\/strong> (<\/em>w\u01d2 h\u011bn h\u01ceo)<\/em> \u2014 “I’m very good” or \u6211\u8fd8\u597d<\/strong> (w\u01d2 h\u00e1i h\u01ceo) <\/em>\u2014 “I’m okay.”<\/p>\n Or, you can reply with a few lines about how things are going and keep the conversation flowing.<\/p>\n This is a Chinese greeting that’s commonly used when you run into someone while out and about.<\/p>\n It might seem quite nosy by non-Chinese standards, but don’t be bothered by that. It’s another way for people to express that they care\u2014by showing interest.<\/p>\n It’s common to use variations of this expression by adding a location. For example, if you run into a student, you might greet them with \u53bb\u4e0a\u8bfe\u4e86\uff1f<\/strong> (q\u00f9 sh\u00e0ng k\u00e8 le?)<\/em> \u2014 “Going to class?”<\/p>\n This is the first thing Chinese speakers say when they pick up the phone<\/a>.<\/p>\n It’s just like when English speakers say “Hello?” to answer the phone. The receiver is greeting the caller, but also expecting that they identify themselves.<\/p>\n This is an expression used between old friends. It’s a very positive greeting. In fact, it’s where we got the English phrase “long time no see”!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Now that you know these 14 ways to say hello in Chinese, you’ll be able to greet people with confidence in different situations.<\/p>\n You can even see them used by native speakers in real situations with a language learning program like FluentU<\/a>.<\/p>\n FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n <\/p>\r\n You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app<\/a> or Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n2. \u60a8\u597d (n\u00edn h\u01ceo)<\/em> \u2014 Hello (respectful)<\/h2>\n
3. \u5927\u5bb6\u597d (d\u00e0 ji\u0101 h\u01ceo)<\/em> \u2014 Hello everyone<\/h2>\n
4. \u54c8\u7f57 (h\u0101 lu\u014d)<\/em> \u2014 Hello<\/h2>\n
5. \u55e8 (h\u0101i)<\/em> \u2014 Hi<\/h2>\n
6. \u65e9 (z\u01ceo) <\/em>\u2014 Morning<\/h2>\n
7. \u65e9\u4e0a\u597d (z\u01ceo sh\u00e0ng h\u01ceo)<\/em> \u2014 Good morning<\/h2>\n
8. \u4e0b\u5348\u597d (xi\u00e0 w\u01d4 h\u01ceo)<\/em> \u2014 Good afternoon<\/h2>\n
9. \u665a\u4e0a\u597d (w\u01cen sh\u00e0ng h\u01ceo)<\/em> \u2014 Good evening<\/h2>\n
10. \u4f60\u5403\u4e86\u5417\uff1f (n\u01d0 ch\u012b le ma?) <\/em>\u2014 Have you eaten?<\/h2>\n
11. \u6700\u8fd1\u597d\u5417\uff1f (zu\u00ec j\u00ecn h<\/em>\u01ce<\/em>o ma?)<\/em> \u2014 How are you these days?<\/h2>\n
12. \u53bb\u54ea\u513f\uff1f (q\u00f9 n\u01cer?)<\/em> \u2014 Where are you going?<\/h2>\n
13. \u5582 (w\u00e9i) <\/em>\u2014 Hello (answering the phone)<\/h2>\n
14. \u597d\u4e45\u4e0d\u89c1 (h\u01ceo ji\u01d4 b\u00fa ji\u00e0n) <\/em>\u2014 Long time no see<\/h2>\n
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