hola
/ˈola/
The English phrase "hi" is translated into Spanish as hola.
hola is a friendly, informal greeting.
Meaning: friendly, informal greeting (intj)
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈola/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly pronounce the 'h' in hola as an aspirated sound like the 'h' in 'hi', but in Spanish, it should be completely silent.
Did you know?
- In some Latin American countries, people may respond to a hola with ¿qué onda?, which literally means 'what wave?' It is used exactly like the English 'what's up?'
- The word hola may have originated from a command to ferrymen to fetch a boat or stop. It is likely related to the French holà and Old High German holā.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, a simple hola is often accompanied by a physical gesture like a light kiss on the cheek or a handshake, depending on the region and gender.
Examples in context
- ¡Hola! ¿Qué tal estás?Hi! How are you?Tatoeba #535238 by Shishir, translation #30316 by Zifre
- Hola chicos, soy Mike.Hi guys, I'm Mike.Tatoeba #1020897 by Shishir, translation #1020895 by CP
- ¡Hola! Soy nuevo aquí.Hi! I'm new here.Tatoeba #1666523 by marcelostockle, translation #1654229 by Spamster
- Buenos días, señorita López. ¿Cómo está usted hoy?Good morning, Miss López. How are you today?
- ¡Hola, Ana! ¿Cómo estás?Hello, Ana! How are you?
- ¡Hey, Juan! ¿Qué tal? ¿Has visto la última película?Hey, Juan! How's it going? Have you seen the latest movie?
- ¡Buenos días, María! ¿Cómo estás hoy?Good morning, María! How are you today?
- 75 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucía and Mateo meet at a cafe.
- Lucía¡Hola, Mateo!Hi, Mateo!
- Mateo¡Hola, Lucía! ¿Cómo vas?Hi, Lucía! How's it going?
- LucíaMuy bien, gracias.Very well, thanks.
- MateoMe alegro mucho.I am very happy to hear that.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hi” translations and entries hola, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries hola, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
