Aug 13

Learning Basic Spanish Greetings

Learning the Spanish language can be very useful and fun today if you live in the United States.

When you begin learning Spanish, your earliest word will generally be a greeting of some kind.

The single word “Hola” (the “H” is not pronounced) in Spanish is equivalent to the English word “Hello” and is uncluttered by any complex syntax.

When first meeting either an acquaintance or a stranger, “Hola” is an appropriate greeting. (When answering the phone, however, Spanish speakers will usually say “diga” or “bueno” instead of “Hola.”)

“Adios” is the way of saying “goodbye” in Spanish.

Unlike English which has only one form, Spanish and other Romance languages (Portuguese, Italian, Romanian, and French Portuguese, Italian, Romanian, and French) have two forms of verbs used when addressing or referring to people. These two forms are generally known as formal and informa forms. The informal form is normally used for addressing younger persons, relatives, friends, or persons of lower status. The formal form is normally used for strangers, older people who are not close friends or relatives and for people of higher position.

When inquiring as to how someone is, such as “How are you?”, “Como estas?” (informal) or “Como esta?” (formal) is the Spanish version of the same thing. Or you can use “que tal” or ”Que passa?” (What’s happening?) or “Como se va?” (formal) or “Como te vas?” (informal) for “How is it going?” or literally “How’s it going with you?”

When saying “Good afternoon” “Buenas tardes” is the Spanish phrase. If you want to say “Good morning, Good day, etc” “Buenos dias” is the same thing in Spanish.
“Good night” in Spanish is “Buenos noches.”

When meeting someone new you might ask their name by saying “Como te llamas?” (informal) or the more formal form, “Como se llama?” which literally translates as “How do you call yourself?”

While these simple words and phrases form the basics of Spanish greetings, you will learn more complex forms as you further develop your Spanish speaking skills. Nevertheless, these phrases will be important in getting started.

The phrases used every day are the ones that help you to master Spanish more quickly because you will be using them on a regular basis. “Hello” and “Good Night” are two of the most used phrases so saying these words will give you plenty of practice in your comfort zone.

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