Ways to say it
| Hungarian | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| szia | [ˈsijɒ] (narrow) | |
| szervusz | [ˈsɛrvus] (narrow) | |
| heló | ||
| helló | [ˈhɛloː] (narrow) | informal |
| üdvözlöm | [ˈydvøzløm] (narrow) | |
| sziasztok | [ˈsijɒstok] (narrow) | informal, plural |
| szervusztok | [ˈsɛrvustok] (narrow) | formal, plural |
A common and versatile way to say 'Hi!' or 'Hello!' is szia. For a modern, casual greeting borrowed from English, you can use heló. If you want to say 'Hey!', you can use the informal halló! For a more traditional or slightly more polite but still friendly tone, use szervusz.
Which one should you use?
While szia is the native informal greeting, heló is a direct loanword from English used in casual, modern speech. For a slightly more traditional or polite alternative that maintains a friendly tone, use szervusz.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
In informal situations, you can use szia, sziasztok, heló, helló or halló! For more formal or professional settings, use szervusztok or the highly formal üdvözlöm, which translates to 'I greet you' or 'Greetings'. When addressing someone for the first time in a formal context, üdvözlöm is appropriate.
How does it change in a sentence?
When greeting two or more people informally, use the plural form sziasztok.
When do people say it?
To say 'Good day!', you can use Jó napot kívánok! If you are writing a formal letter or addressing someone formally, you might use Tisztelt hölgyem / uram! (Dear Madam/Sir!) or Kedves Professzor Úr! (Dear Professor!).
Did you know?
- The informal greeting szia is used not only to say 'hello' but is also the standard way to say 'bye'.
- The greeting szervusz comes from the Latin phrase 'servus humillimus', meaning 'your humblest servant'.
Examples in context
- Helló Tamás! Jó reggelt!Hello, Tom. Good morning.This sentence demonstrates using helló in a greeting.Tatoeba #5454124 by felvideki, translation #30314 by CM
- Szia! Te vagy Jackie Scott?Hello. Are you Jackie Scott?This sentence shows the use of szia to greet someone.Tatoeba #4728107 by mraz, translation #54606 by CN
- Helló, én Lucifer vagyok. Én irányítom ezt a helyet.Hello, I'm Lucifer. I run things around here.This sentence provides an example of the informal helló.Tatoeba #4278481 by bandeirante, translation #4277863 by shekitten
- Kedves Anna, szia!Dear Anna, hi!
- 29 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Zsófia and Zoltán meet at a local cafe.
- ZsófiaSzia, Zoltán!Hi, Zoltán!
- ZoltánSzia, Zsófia! Hogy vagy?Hi, Zsófia! How are you?
- ZsófiaJól vagyok, köszönöm.I am well, thank you.
- ZoltánÉn is jól vagyok.I am doing well too.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hello” translations and entries szia, szervusz, helló, üdvözlöm, sziasztok, szervusztok, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries szervusz, szervusztok, szia, sziasztok, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
When talking to his Aunty my dad always says, and please forgive my spelling, “Choklom” when she answers the phone. I always assumed that meant “Hello”. Anyway……………………
I proudly said Choklom to a Hungarian guy and his mum at the local dog park a while ago when they asked me if i knew how to speak Hungarian. The reaction on their faces told me my world was about to change forever.
It was an awkward kind of “how do i deal with this?” look that was accompanied by an equally awkward short moment of silence that I needed to end ASAP for their sake as they hadn’t lived in Australia long and i was beginning to think they were thinking about moving back to Hungary!?
The son looked at me in wonder and politely asked me how I came to know that word and what I thought it meant? I told them that growing up as a kid I would hear my dad say it when he called his aunty back in Hungary shortly after she answered the phone.
“Ah, that makes sense” he said as a wave of relief rolled down their bodies and with that he happily translated
as best he could which was “I’m honored to kiss your hand or Please allow me to kiss your hand”.
They said it was an old formal greeting reserved as a sign of respect and acknowledgment.
Not being one to get easily embarrassed I had a good laugh and said “My apologies and If I’ve offended you both Choklom”.
Any input on the translation gets a Choklom on both hands:)