salve
[ˈsaɫ.weː]singular
The English phrase 'welcome' can be expressed in Latin using salve as the default form. Wiktionary also lists salvete and benevente!
Meaning: greeting given upon someone's arrival (intj)
Ways to say it
| Latin | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| salve | [ˈsaɫ.weː] (Classical Latin, narrow) [ˈsal.ve] (narrow) |
singular |
| salvete | [saɫˈweː.tɛ] (Classical Latin, narrow) [salˈvɛː.te] (narrow) |
plural |
| benevente! | singular | |
| beneventi! | plural |
In Latin, salve functions both as a greeting for arrival and a general 'hello'.
What does it mean word for word?
The word salve is an imperative form meaning 'be well' or 'hail'.
Which one should you use?
Use salve when welcoming exactly one person, while salvete is used when welcoming more than one person. For the specific expression of a welcome, benevente! is the singular form and beneventi! is the plural form.
Related words
Did you know?
- The word salve also describes a medicinal ointment in English. Both the greeting and the cream come from the same Latin root meaning 'to heal' or 'to make healthy'.
- Latin has no single word that perfectly matches the English 'welcome' as an adjective, such as in 'a welcome guest'. Romans instead described the guest as gratus, meaning 'pleasing' or 'grateful'.
Examples in context
- Salvete, discipuli et discipulae!Welcome, students!This example shows how to address a group of students using the form salve.Tatoeba #2178065 by Martka, translation #2803383 by Deerhound
- Salvete. Quoniam multitudo hominum advenit, quaeso, sedete et paulisper manete.Welcome. Now that many people have arrived, please take a seat and wait for a while.This example uses the form salve when a crowd of people has arrived.Tatoeba #9032185 by soridsolid, translation #7798493 by sharris123
- Salve!Welcome.This example demonstrates a simple greeting with the form salve.Tatoeba #2306375 by soweli_Elepanto, translation #138919 by CM
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Marcus meets Julia at the entrance of his house.
- MarcusSalve, Julia!Welcome, Julia!
- JuliaGratias tibi ago, Marce.Thank you, Marcus.
- MarcusIntra et quiesce.Come in and rest.
- JuliaBene est.That is good.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “welcome” translations and entries salve, salvete, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
