Hola, te extraño
/ˈola te e(ɡ)sˈtɾaɲo/word by word
The English phrase "hi, I miss you" is translated into Spanish as Hola, te extraño.
Hola, te extraño is an informal way to say "Hi, I miss you".
Which one should you use?
In Spain, it is much more common to use the phrase te echo de menos instead of te extraño to express missing someone.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Latin America, ¡Hola! Te extraño un montón means "Hi, I miss you a lot". In Spain, Hola, te echo de menos un montón is used to express that you miss someone greatly.
How does it change in a sentence?
Changing the verb to the imperfect tense extrañaba in the phrase Hola, te extrañaba shifts the meaning to "I was missing you" or "I had been missing you".
Did you know?
- While extrañar is common in the Americas, the Spanish phrase te echo de menos literally translates to 'I throw you less'.
- Because extrañar can mean both 'to miss' and 'to find strange', a sentence like extraño este lugar can mean either 'I miss this place' or 'this place seems strange to me'.
- The greeting hola may have originated from a French word meaning 'hey! stop!' It might also be related to an Old High German call used to hail ferrymen.
Examples in context
- Hola, te extraño mucho.Hi, I miss you a lot.
- Hola, te extraño, ¿cómo estás?Hi, I miss you, how are you?
Example conversation
Elena calls Alejandro on the phone after a long time.
- ElenaHola, te extraño, Alejandro.Hi, I miss you, Alejandro.
- AlejandroHola, Elena, yo también te extraño.Hi, Elena, I miss you too.
- Elena¿Cuándo nos vamos a ver?When are we going to see each other?
- AlejandroPronto, te lo prometo.Soon, I promise you.
