hola
/ˈola/
Hi in Spanish is hola.
hola is a friendly, informal greeting. While it is used informally, it can also work as a polite salutation if you use a respectful tone. Other ways to greet people include Buenos días (Good day) in the morning until approximately midday, or Buenas tardes (Good afternoon) during the afternoon or early evening. When meeting someone for the first time, especially in a formal context, you might use Mucho gusto to say "Pleased to meet you." Additionally, ¿Qué tal? is a common informal way to ask "What's up?" or "How's it going?" and you can use the phrase Hola, ¿cómo estás? to say "Hi, how are you?"
Meaning: friendly, informal greeting (intj)
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'.
Did you know?
- The word hola may have originated from the French holà, which was used to tell someone to stop.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, a greeting like hola is often accompanied by a single kiss on the cheek or two, depending on the region.
- In some Latin American countries, it is common to say hola while simultaneously asking ¿qué más?, which literally means 'what more?'
Examples in context
- ¡Hola! ¿Qué tal estás?Hi! How are you?This sentence is useful for practicing the greeting hola.Tatoeba #535238 by Shishir, translation #30316 by Zifre
- Hola chicos, soy Mike.Hi guys, I'm Mike.This sentence shows how to use hola when addressing a group.Tatoeba #1020897 by Shishir, translation #1020895 by CP
- ¡Hola! Soy nuevo aquí.Hi! I'm new here.This sentence demonstrates using hola to introduce yourself as being new.Tatoeba #1666523 by marcelostockle, translation #1654229 by Spamster
- Hola, mucho gusto, ¿cómo se llama?Hello, nice to meet you, what is your name?
- ¡Hola! ¿Cómo te llamas?Hi! What's your name?
- Buenos días a todos.Good morning, everyone.
- ¡Hola! ¿Cómo están?Hi! How are you all?
- 75 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Alejandro and Sofía meet at a local park.
- Alejandro¡Hola, Sofía!Hi, Sofía!
- Sofía¡Hola, Alejandro! ¿Cómo estás?Hi, Alejandro! How are you?
- AlejandroMuy bien, gracias.Very well, thanks.
- SofíaMe alegro mucho.I am very glad.
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.
