嗨
hāi/xaɪ̯⁵⁵/
The Chinese phrase for hi informally is 嗨, pronounced hāi.
嗨 is an informal way of saying hi, similar to the English hey.
What does it mean word for word?
嗨 is a phonetic loanword from the English word 'hi'.
Which one should you use?
嘿 (hēi) is another informal expression that can be used as an equivalent to hi or hey.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is hāi.
Did you know?
- In certain mainland Chinese dialects and internet slang, 嗨 can sometimes be used to describe someone who is acting 'high' or overly excited, much like the English slang for being under the influence.
- The character 嗨 is a phonetic loan, but it is constructed using the radical for 'mouth' (口), signaling to a reader that the character is meant to represent a sound or a spoken utterance.
- Unlike the traditional way of greeting elders with titles or names, using 嗨 with a superior or an elder would be considered jarringly casual or even slightly disrespectful.
Examples in context
- 嗨，好久不见！Hāi, hǎojiǔ bùjiàn!Hi, long time no see!
- 嗨，大家早！Hāi, dàjiā zǎo!Hi, morning everyone!
Example conversation
Wei and Xiaowen bump into each other at a cafe.
- 伟 Wei嗨，晓雯！Hāi, Xiǎowén!Hi, Xiaowen!
- 晓雯 Xiaowen嗨，伟！你也在这里。Hāi, Wěi! Nǐ yě zài zhèlǐ.Hi, Wei! You are here too.
- 伟 Wei是啊，好巧。Shì a, hǎo qiǎo.Yes, what a coincidence.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen你打算喝什么？Nǐ dǎsuàn hē shénme?What are you planning to drink?
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 嗨, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 嗨, CC BY-SA 4.0.
