Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 你好 | nǐ hǎo | /ni²¹⁴⁻³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /ni⁵³ xau⁵³/ (Mandarin, Xi'an, Sinological IPA) |
|
| 您好 | nín hǎo | /nin³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /nei̯¹³ hou̯³⁵/ (Cantonese, Guangzhou, Sinological IPA, Standard Cantonese, Hong Kong) |
polite |
| 你們好 / 你们好 | nǐmen hǎo | ||
| 好 | hǎo | /xɑʊ̯²¹⁴/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /xau⁵³/ (Mandarin, Chengdu, Sinological IPA) |
|
| 嗨 | hāi | /xaɪ̯⁵⁵/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /haːi̯⁵⁵/ (Cantonese, Guangzhou, Sinological IPA, Standard Cantonese, Hong Kong) |
|
| 哈囉 / 哈啰 | hāluó | ||
| 汝好 | lí hó | /li⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ hɤ⁴¹/ (Min Nan, Hokkien, Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Kaohsiung, Sinological IPA) /li⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ho⁵³/ (Min Nan, Hokkien, Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Kaohsiung, Sinological IPA) |
Hokkien |
The most common and universal way to say hello is 你好. Other common ways to greet people include Zǎo shàng hǎo (Good morning), which is typically used until noon and Xià wǔ hǎo (Good afternoon), which is used from around 12 pm until the evening. If you are greeting someone you have not seen in a long time, you can use Hǎo jiǔ bú jiàn, which literally means "Long time no see". In a very colloquial context, such as answering the phone, you might use Wèi.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase 你好 literally means "you good".
Which one should you use?
While 你好 is the standard greeting, 您好 is the polite version used to show respect. 你们好 is used specifically when greeting a group of people.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
To show respect to elders, superiors or in formal settings, use 您好 instead. For very casual, modern or informal conversation, you can use phonetic loanwords from English such as 嗨 (hi) or 哈啰 (hello). The slang term ciallo is also used in informal contexts.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In the Dungan language, you may encounter ни хо, сэляму or хома. In Hokkien, the phrase is 汝好.
How does it change in a sentence?
To address a group of people rather than an individual, use 你們好 by adding the plural suffix -men to the pronoun.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is nǐ hǎo.
Did you know?
- While 你好 is the standard translation for 'hello', Chinese speakers often greet acquaintances by asking 吃了吗? which means 'Have you eaten?'
- The slang term ciallo is not native to traditional Chinese but originates from Japanese internet subculture and was adopted by young users online.
- In some regions, a common way to greet a friend is to ask 去哪儿? meaning 'Where are you going?', even if the speaker has no intention of joining them.
Examples in context
- 你好，汤姆。Hello, Tom.This is useful for greeting Tom using 你好.Tatoeba #5092241 by mirrorvan, translation #54604 by Zifre
- 你好！林峰。Hello! Linfeng.This is useful for greeting Linfeng using 你好.Tatoeba #6149244 by xjjAstrus, translation #6276580 by Kiwi
- 你好！明惠。Hello! Minghui.This is useful for greeting Minghui using 你好.Tatoeba #6149245 by xjjAstrus, translation #6276550 by Kiwi
- 43 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
志强 meets 晓雯 in a coffee shop.
- 志强 Zhiqiang你好，晓雯。Nǐ hǎo, Xiǎowén.Hello, Xiaowen.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen你好，志强。Nǐ hǎo, Zhìqiáng.Hello, Zhiqiang.
- 志强 Zhiqiang你最近好吗？Nǐ zuìjìn hǎo ma?How have you been lately?
- 晓雯 Xiaowen我很好，谢谢。Wǒ hěn hǎo, xièxiè.I am very well, thanks.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hello” translations and entries 你好, 您好, 好, 嗨, 汝好, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
