hola
/ˈola/
Hi in Spanish is hola.
hola is the standard way to say hi in Spanish. While it serves as a general greeting, you may also use time-specific greetings: ¡Buenos días! means good morning and is used until about noon, ¡Buenas tardes! is used for good afternoon from around midday until late afternoon and ¡Buenas noches! is used for good evening or goodnight when greeting someone in the late afternoon or evening.
Meaning: friendly, informal greeting (intj)
Which one should you use?
While hola is a standard greeting, it is less formal than buenos días (good morning) or buenas tardes (good afternoon).
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈola/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly pronounce the 'h' in hola as an aspirated sound like the English 'h' in 'hi', but it should be completely silent.
Did you know?
- Ancient speakers of Old High German used a similar sound holā specifically to hail ferrymen across the water.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, a greeting like hola is often accompanied by a physical gesture, such as a handshake or a kiss on the cheek, depending on the region.
- The spelling of hola can sometimes be confused with the word 'ola', which means 'wave' in the context of the ocean.
Examples in context
- ¡Hola! ¿Qué tal estás?Hi! How are you?This sentence is useful for seeing how to use hola in a greeting and a question.Tatoeba #535238 by Shishir, translation #30316 by Zifre
- Hola chicos, soy Mike.Hi guys, I'm Mike.This sentence is useful for seeing how to use hola to introduce yourself.Tatoeba #1020897 by Shishir, translation #1020895 by CP
- ¡Hola! Soy nuevo aquí.Hi! I'm new here.This sentence is useful for seeing how to use hola when arriving in a new place.Tatoeba #1666523 by marcelostockle, translation #1654229 by Spamster
- Buenos días, señor. ¿Cómo ha estado?Good morning, sir. How have you been?
- ¡Buenas tardes! ¿En qué puedo ayudarle?Good afternoon! How can I help you?
- 75 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elena and Mateo meet in a hallway.
- Elena¡Hola, Mateo!Hi, Mateo!
- Mateo¡Hola, Elena!Hi, Elena!
- Elena¿Cómo va todo?How is everything going?
- MateoMuy bien, gracias.Very well, thanks.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hi” translations and entries hola, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries hola, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
