嗨
hāicasual
In Traditional Chinese a casual "hi" is 嗨 (hāi). The standard greeting is 你好 (nǐ hǎo), and 哈囉 (hā luō) is another friendly choice.
Meaning: greeting (phrase)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 嗨 | hāi | casual |
| 哈囉 | hā luō | casual |
| 你好 | nǐ hǎo | everyday |
嗨 (hāi) fits friends and young people. 你好 (nǐ hǎo) is the safe choice with people you do not know well.
Which one should you use?
These greetings are written the same in Traditional and Simplified Chinese. Traditional characters are the standard in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao.
Did you know?
- The Chinese 嗨 (hāi) is a borrowing from English "hi".
Examples in context
- 嗨，最近好嗎？hāi, zuìjìn hǎo ma?Hi, how have you been lately?
- 你好，請多指教。nǐ hǎo, qǐng duō zhǐjiào.Hi, I look forward to working with you.
- 哈囉，你在哪裡？hā luō, nǐ zài nǎlǐ?Hi, where are you?
Example conversation
Jia-hao meets his friend Yu-ting outside a night market in Taipei.
- Jia-hao嗨，雨婷！hāi, Yǔtíng!Hi, Yuting!
- Yu-ting嗨，你來得好早。hāi, nǐ lái de hǎo zǎo.Hi, you are here early.
- Jia-hao對，我們進去吧。duì, wǒmen jìnqù ba.Yes, let us go in.
