szia barátom
The English phrase "hello my friend" is translated into Hungarian as szia barátom.
This phrase is a casual greeting used to welcome a friend.
What does it mean word for word?
The word szia is a casual greeting, and barátom is the possessive form of barát (friend) with the suffix -om meaning "my".
Which one should you use?
While szia barátom is casual, Jó napot kívánok, barátom (Good day to you, my friend) is a more formal way to greet someone, though using barátom in a formal context is still somewhat unusual.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Szia barátom is an informal greeting and is not appropriate for use with strangers, elders or in formal business settings. For a formal greeting, you can use Üdvözlöm, barátom!, which means "I greet you, my friend!"
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase uses the singular possessive form. If you were addressing multiple friends, you would say szia barátaim.
Did you know?
- Calling someone barátom in a situation where you are not actually friends can come across as sarcastic or condescending in Hungarian.
- In Hungarian, you can use szia to both say 'hello' and 'goodbye'.
- If you greet a friend with szia, you might notice people saying it twice in a row, szia-szia, to sound even more affectionate or enthusiastic.
Example conversation
Zoltán and Katalin meet in a park.
- ZoltánSzia barátom, hogy telik a napod?Hello my friend, how is your day going?
- KatalinSzia Zoltán, nagyon jól!Hello Zoltán, very well!
- ZoltánSzeretnél sétálni egy kicsit?Would you like to walk a little?
- KatalinIgen, nagyon szívesen!Yes, I'd love to!
