Ways to say it
| Swiss German | Note |
|---|---|
| Hoi, wie gaht's? | |
| Grüezi, wie gaht's Ihne? | formal |
Hoi is the casual, purely Swiss German way to say 'hi', used with friends, family and people your own age. For someone you address formally, swap in Grüezi, wie gaht's Ihne?
What does it mean word for word?
Hoi has no direct translation, it simply functions as an informal hello. wie gaht's literally asks 'how goes it'.
Which one should you use?
Hoi alone or paired with wie gaht's? is informal and friendly. Grüezi is the formal counterpart, used with strangers and elders.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Hoi is strictly informal and would sound too casual with, for example, a doctor or a new business contact, where Grüezi fits better.
Is it said differently in some regions?
Hoi is used across almost all of German-speaking Switzerland and is one of the words most associated with Swiss German specifically.
How does it change in a sentence?
The pronoun after wie gaht's changes with formality, dir informally and Ihne formally, while Hoi itself never changes.
How do you pronounce it?
Hoi is a single short syllable, pronounced close to the English word 'hoy'.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Hoi is not used in Germany and can confuse German speakers from outside Switzerland, who may not recognise it as a greeting at all.
When do people say it?
Hoi is one of the clearest markers of Swiss German in casual speech, and Swiss people switching to Standard German will often still slip in a Hoi out of habit.
Did you know?
- Hoi is one of the Swiss German words with no real equivalent in Standard German, which is why German visitors sometimes miss that it is a greeting.
- Swiss speakers often keep saying Hoi even when the rest of a conversation switches to Standard German or English.
Examples in context
- Hoi, wie gaht's dir?Hello, how are you?
- Hoi zäme, wie gaht's öich?Hi everyone, how are you all?
- Grüezi, wie gaht's Ihne hüt?Hello, how are you today?
Example conversation
Jasmin runs into her old classmate Fabian in the supermarket.
- JasminHoi Fabian, wie gaht's dir?Hi Fabian, how are you?
- FabianHoi Jasmin, guet merci, und dir?Hi Jasmin, good thanks, and you?
- JasminAu guet. Lang nid gseh!Good too. Haven't seen you in a while!
- FabianJo, isch scho e Wile.Yeah, it's been a while.
