Learn how to say hello, how are you, and good-bye in English. Click on each link to hear that word or phrase pronounced.

 
Greetings

hello
The most common greeting, used when meeting someone for the first time that day.

good morning
Used only in the morning (before noon).

good afternoon
This greeting is used between noon and 5pm.

good evening
This greeting is used after 5pm.

hi
Informal greeting.

After the greeting

How are you?
After you greet someone, it is customary to ask "how are you?" In English, this is just a polite question; you should not respond with a lot of detail.

How's it going?
This is an informal way to ask "how are you?"

 
Reponses

fine
This is the most common way to respond to "how are you?"

good
Another common way to respond.

not so good
If you do not feel well or have other problems, you can respond with this.

so so / OK
The meaning of these somewhat informal responses is in between "fine" and "not so good."

 
Informal

What's up? / What's new?
These are very informal ways of asking "how are you?"

nothing / nothing much
These responses can only be used to answer "what's up?" and "what's new?"

 
Departing

good-bye
This is what you say when you leave.

good night
This means "good-bye" but is used only at night (after 7pm).

bye
An informal way to say "good-bye."

see you later / see you soon
Other informal ways to say "good-bye" used when you are likely to see the person again later that day, or when you have plans to see each other again.

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