ہیلو، آپ کیسے ہیں؟
hello, aap kaise hain?
The English phrase "hello, how are you" is translated into Urdu as ہیلو، آپ کیسے ہیں؟ (hello, aap kaise hain?).
This is a common greeting used to start a conversation and ask about someone's well-being. In different contexts, you might hear or use other variations such as Kya haal hai? for informal situations or Kaise hain aap? in more formal settings.
Which one should you use?
While ہیلو، آپ کیسے ہیں؟ is the standard polite form, you can use تم کیسے ہو? when speaking to close friends or people younger than you. To address a female specifically, change the masculine kaise to the feminine kaisi to say آپ کیسی ہیں?
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase آپ کیسے ہیں؟ uses the polite pronoun aap and the masculine plural verb form hain to show respect. When addressing a woman, you must change the masculine kaise to the feminine kaisi.
How do you pronounce it?
hello, aap kaise hain?
When do people say it?
When someone asks how you are, common responses include Main theek hoon, shukriya (I'm fine, thank you) or simply Theek hoon (I'm fine).
Did you know?
- In many Urdu-speaking cultures, a greeting like آپ کیسے ہیں؟ is often accompanied by a slight nod of the head or placing the right hand over the heart to show sincerity.
- The polite pronoun آپ, used to ask how someone is, shares an ancient root with the Sanskrit word for 'soul' or 'spirit'.
- While 'hello' is a common loanword, a traditional Urdu greeting often starts with Assalam-u-Alaikum, which means 'Peace be upon you'.
Examples in context
- ہیلو، آپ کیسے ہیں؟ میں ٹھیک ہوں۔hello, aap kaise hain? mein theek hoon.Hello, how are you? I am fine.
- ہیلو، آپ کیسے ہیں؟ کیا سب ٹھیک ہے؟hello, aap kaise hain? kya sab theek hai?Hello, how are you? Is everything okay?
Example conversation
Ali and Sarah meet each other at a library.
- علی Aliہیلو، آپ کیسے ہیں؟Hello, aap kaise hain?Hello, how are you?
- سارہ Saraمیں ٹھیک ہوں، شکریہ۔ آپ کیسے ہیں؟Main theek hoon, shukriya. Aap kaise hain?I am fine, thank you. How are you?
- علی Aliمیں بھی بالکل ٹھیک ہوں۔Main bhi bilkul theek hoon.I am also perfectly fine.
- سارہ Saraیہ سن کر خوشی ہوئی۔Yeh sun kar khushi hui.I am glad to hear that.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries آپ, CC BY-SA 4.0.
