Olá, meu amigo
/oˈla mew aˈmi.ɡu/word by word
The English phrase "hello, my friend" is translated into Portuguese as Olá, meu amigo.
This phrase is a friendly greeting used to welcome a person you know well.
Which one should you use?
While Olá, meu amigo is a standard way to greet someone, Oi, meu amigo is a more informal and common way to say "hi, my friend". In very casual settings, you might also hear Alô, meu chapa to mean "my buddy" or the slang Oi, mano/maninha which means "hi, bro/sis".
Is it said differently in some regions?
The expression E aí, beleza? and the slang Oi, mano/maninha are frequently used in Brazil.
How does it change in a sentence?
Portuguese requires gender agreement. If you are addressing a female friend, you must change both the possessive pronoun and the noun to their feminine forms, resulting in Olá, minha amiga.
How do you pronounce it?
/oˈla mew aˈmi.ɡu/
Did you know?
- In Brazil, the casual greeting E aí, beleza? literally asks 'And there, beauty?', using the word for beauty to ask if everything is alright.
- While 'Olá' is a standard greeting, using Alô to say hello is almost exclusively reserved for answering the telephone in Brazil.
- The term amigo is etymologically linked to the Latin verb 'amare', meaning 'to love', implying that a friend is someone you love.
Examples in context
- Olá, meu amigo, como você está?Hello, my friend, how are you?
- Olá, meu amigo, que bom te ver!Hello, my friend, it is good to see you!
- Olá, meu amigo, tudo bem?Hello, my friend, is everything well?
Example conversation
Felipe meets Beatriz at a café.
- FelipeOlá, meu amigo! Faz tempo que não nos vemos.Hello, my friend! It's been a long time since we saw each other.
- BeatrizOi, Felipe! Eu também senti sua falta.Hi, Felipe! I missed you too.
- FelipeVocê quer tomar um café comigo?Do you want to have a coffee with me?
- BeatrizSim, eu adoraria!Yes, I would love to!
