szia
[ˈsijɒ]
The Hungarian word for "hi" is szia.
szia is a friendly, informal greeting used among friends and acquaintances.
Meaning: friendly, informal greeting (intj)
What does it mean word for word?
The word 'szia' is used for both 'hi' and 'bye' in informal settings.
Which one should you use?
While szia is used for friends, Jó napot! (Good day) is the standard way to say hello in formal or polite situations.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Transylvania, people might use the borrowed greeting Bună (pronounced "BOO-nuh") from Romanian.
Did you know?
- While szia is informal, Hungarians often use the very formal Kez csókolom (I kiss your hand) when greeting elderly people to show deep respect.
- The word szia is linguistically related to the concept of a 'servant', derived from its ancestor szervusz.
- In the plural form, you would say sziasztok to greet a group of friends.
Examples in context
- Heló! Szia!"Hi." "Hi."This example shows a short exchange of greetings using szia.Tatoeba #10648929 by maaster, translation #10648927 by maaster
- Szia, a nevem Tom.Hi, my name is Tom.This sentence uses szia to introduce oneself.Tatoeba #11598748 by kiseva33, translation #4500043 by CK
- Szia, az én nevem Omid.Hi, my name is Omid.Tatoeba #786172 by szaby78, translation #696157 by omidcat2004
- Szia, hogy vagy?Hi, how are you?
- 30 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Tamás and Katalin meet briefly on a street.
- TamásSzia, Katalin!Hi, Katalin!
- KatalinSzia, Tamás!Hi, Tamás!
- TamásHogy vagy?How are you?
- KatalinJól vagyok, köszönöm.I'm fine, thanks.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hi” translations and entries szia, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries szia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
