haai
/ɦɑːi/
The English word "hi" is translated into Afrikaans as haai.
haai is a friendly, informal greeting.
Meaning: friendly, informal greeting (intj)
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
haai is an informal greeting used among friends and peers. In more formal situations, you should use greetings such as Goeiedag (good day), Goeie môre (good morning), Goeie middag (good afternoon) or Goeie aand (good evening).
How do you pronounce it?
/ɦɑːi/
Did you know?
- While haai is a friendly greeting, it is also the Afrikaans word for a 'shark'.
- Because haai means 'shark', it is a common pun in South African signage and advertising to use a picture of a shark alongside a friendly greeting.
- Despite their similar appearance, the Afrikaans haai and English 'hi' have entirely different ancestral paths in historical linguistics.
Examples in context
- Haai! Hoe gaan dit?Hi! How are you?This sentence is useful for practicing how to follow a greeting with a question about someone's well-being using haai.Tatoeba #13650517 by lingomaxim, translation #30316 by Zifre
- Haai, dit is lekker om jou te sien.Hi, it is good to see you.
- Haai daar, hoe gaan dit vandag?Hi there, how are you today?
Example conversation
Anika and Stefan meet at a coffee shop.
- AnikaHaai, Stefan!Hi, Stefan!
- StefanHaai, Anika! Hoe is dit?Hi, Anika! How is it going?
- AnikaDit gaan baie goed, dankie.It is going very well, thank you.
- StefanEk is bly om te hoor.I am glad to hear.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hi” translations and entries haai, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries haai, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
