hola
/ˈola/
Hi in Spanish is hola.
hola is the most common way to say hi in Spanish and serves as a friendly, informal greeting.
Meaning: friendly, informal greeting (intj)
Is it said differently in some regions?
The informal greeting ¿Qué hubo?, meaning what's up?, is used in countries like Colombia and El Salvador.
How does it change in a sentence?
In written Spanish, an exclamation mark is used at both the beginning and the end of the word: ¡Hola!
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈola/
When do people say it?
When meeting someone for the first time, you can say Mucho gusto to mean nice to meet you. Depending on the time of day, you might use other greetings: Buenos días is a common way to say good morning and can be used until around midday, while Buenas tardes is a formal way to say good afternoon from noon until the evening.
Did you know?
- In some highly informal settings, particularly in Mexico, friends might skip hola entirely and use '¿Qué onda?' which literally translates to 'what wave?'
- The Spanish word hola likely shares a common ancestor with the English word 'hello', both tracing back to a Germanic exclamation used to call out to someone.
- While hola is universal, some people in Spain may say ¡Buenas! as a shorthand greeting that works for any time of day.
Examples in context
- ¡Hola! ¿Qué tal estás?Hi! How are you?This sentence shows how to use hola to ask how someone is.Tatoeba #535238 by Shishir, translation #30316 by Zifre
- Hola chicos, soy Mike.Hi guys, I'm Mike.This sentence demonstrates using hola to introduce yourself to a group.Tatoeba #1020897 by Shishir, translation #1020895 by CP
- ¡Hola! Soy nuevo aquí.Hi! I'm new here.This sentence shows how to use hola to state that you are new.Tatoeba #1666523 by marcelostockle, translation #1654229 by Spamster
- 75 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daniel and Lucía meet at a cafe.
- Daniel¡Hola, Lucía!Hi, Lucía!
- Lucía¡Hola, Daniel! ¿Cómo estás?Hi, Daniel! How are you?
- DanielMuy bien, gracias.Very well, thank you.
- LucíaQué bueno.That's good.
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.
