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 |
The primary way to say welcome is through the greeting salve or its plural form. These are used as greetings upon someone's arrival. Related verbal expressions such as alicuius adventu festum agere, alicuius adventu festum ago or adventu festum ago can be used to mean the act of affirming or greeting the arrival of someone. If you wish to describe someone as being a welcome guest using an adjective, you might use volens, acceptus or amicus to indicate their arrival is a cause of joy.
Which one should you use?
Use salve when welcoming exactly one person. Use salvete when welcoming more than one person. Similarly, benevente! is the singular form and beneventi! is the plural form.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The forms are divided by number: salve and benevente! are singular, while salvete and beneventi! are plural.
Did you know?
- While salve is the standard greeting, a Roman might use the phrase ave to welcome someone with a higher social status, as it implies a more respectful hailing.
- The word salve is an etymological relative of the English word 'salvation' and the greeting 'salutations'.
- The greeting salve is actually a command that literally means 'be well' or 'be in good health'.
Examples in context
- Salvete, discipuli et discipulae!Welcome, students!This sentence is useful for welcoming 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 sentence shows how to use the form salve when many people have arrived.Tatoeba #9032185 by soridsolid, translation #7798493 by sharris123
- Salve!Welcome.This sentence shows the simple use of the form salve.Tatoeba #2306375 by soweli_Elepanto, translation #138919 by CM
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Marcus arrives at Claudia's house.
- ClaudiaSalve, Marce!Welcome, Marcus!
- MarcusSalve, Claudia!Hello, Claudia!
- ClaudiaIntra et quiesce.Come in and rest.
- MarcusGratias tibi ago.Thank you.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “welcome” translations and entries salve, salvete, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries salve, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
