你好同再見
nei5 hou2 tung4 zoi3 gin3
The phrase 你好同再見 (nei5 hou2 tung4 zoi3 gin3) means hello and goodbye in Cantonese.
This phrase combines a standard greeting with a parting phrase to cover both meeting and leaving someone. While 你好 is a common way to say hello that works in both formal and informal situations, you might also encounter other greetings such as 早晨 for good morning (typically used until the afternoon), 嗨 for a casual hi among young people or the informal 點呀 for asking how someone is.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase consists of 你好 (hello), the word 同 (tung4) which means 'and' or 'with' and 再見 (zoi3 gin3). The term 再見 is a literal combination of the words for 'again' (再) and 'see/meet' (見).
How do you pronounce it?
nei5 hou2 tung4 zoi3 gin3
Did you know?
- In many Cantonese social circles, saying 'hello' is often replaced by asking about a person's recent activities, such as 'Have you eaten yet?' (食咗飯未? / sik6 zo2 faan6 mei6?).
- If you are leaving a shop or a taxi, it is common to say 唔該 instead of 再見. While 唔該 usually means 'thank you', it functions as a polite goodbye in service contexts.
- While the text uses 再見 for 'goodbye', in casual Cantonese speech, people much more frequently use 拜拜 (baai1 baai1), which is a direct phonetic loanword from the English 'bye-bye'.
Example conversation
Xiaotong is teaching Zhiqiang basic Cantonese phrases.
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung志強，你要學你好同再見。Zi3 keung4, nei5 jiu3 hok6 nei5 hou2 tung4 zoi3 gin3.Zhiqiang, you need to learn hello and goodbye.
- 志強 Chi Keung你好同再見係點樣讀？nei5 hou2 tung4 zoi3 gin3 hai6 dim2 joeng2 duk6?How do you pronounce hello and goodbye?
- 曉彤 Hiu Tung好簡單，跟住我讀。hou2 gaan2 daan1, gan1 zyu6 ngo5 duk6.It's very simple, follow my lead.
- 志強 Chi Keung我明喇，唔該晒你！ngo5 ming4 laa3, m4 goi1 saai3 nei5!I understand now, thank you very much!
