שלום
sholem/ˈʃɔ.ɫəm/
In Yiddish, the English phrase "hi" is expressed as שלום (sholem).
שלום is a friendly, informal greeting used to say hello, but it can also be used as a parting to say goodbye.
Meaning: friendly, informal greeting (intj)
What does it mean word for word?
The word שלום literally means "peace".
Which one should you use?
While שלום is a simple, everyday greeting, the compound form שלום־עליכם is a more traditional and formal way to say hello.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is sholem. It is pronounced /ˈʃɔ.ɫəm/ with the stress on the first of two syllables.
When do people say it?
When using the more traditional greeting שלום־עליכם (peace be upon you), the standard polite response is עליכם־שלום (upon you be peace).
Did you know?
- The greeting שלום־עליכם originates from a liturgical poem sung on Friday nights to welcome the 'angels of peace' into the home for the Sabbath.
- Because שלום means 'peace', using it as a greeting reflects an ancient Middle Eastern tradition of assuring a stranger that you come with peaceful intentions.
- Because it is derived from Hebrew, שלום is a 'cognate' shared by many other Jewish languages, allowing a Yiddish speaker to be understood by a Hebrew speaker.
Examples in context
- שלום־עליכם, איך בין טאָם.Hi, I'm Tom.This sentence uses שלום to introduce oneself.Tatoeba #8486110 by shekitten, translation #5576200 by CK
- „שלום־עליכם!״ – „עליכם־שלום, וואָס מאַכסטו?״"Hello!" "Hi, how are you?"This sentence shows a dialogue using the traditional greeting שלום־עליכם and its response עליכם־שלום.Tatoeba #10653987 by shekitten, translation #10653982 by shekitten
- שלום־עליכם, איר האָט געבעטן אַ נײַעם פּאַראָל.Hi, you asked for a new password.This sentence uses שלום as a greeting at the start of a sentence.Tatoeba #13587524 by rul, translation #13572329 by rul
- 9 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Reizel and Avrom meet on the street.
- רייזל Reizelשלום, אברהם!sholem, Avrom!Hi, Avrom!
- אברהם Avrahamשלום, רייזל. ווי גייט עס?sholem, Reizel. vi geyt es?Hi, Reizel. How is it going?
- רייזל Reizelמאַכט זיך גוט, דאַנק דיר.makht zikh gut, dank dir.Doing well, thank you.
- אברהם Avrahamגוט צו הערן!gut tsu hern!Good to hear!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry שלום, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries שלום, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
