How to say good morning in Spanish

How to say hello in Spanish

In theory even the worst dictionary in the world should contain the correct translation of expressions like good morning or hello in Spanish. However, where cultural context appears, dictionaries are quite useless. In theory, good morning is the equivalent of buenos días and hello of hola. And in practice? Let’s take a look at this curious phenomenon.

What do Spanish people use more often? Hola or buenos días?

Spaniards are quite informal in everyday life, besides they adore using forms like “mi niña” or “chicos” independently of the interlocutor’s age. Bearing this in mind, in most situations they simply say hola (hello). Often they mix the formal (buenos días) and the informal greetings (hola) saying Hola, buenos días or even Hola, buenas.

How to say good afternoon in Spanish?

This one is easy, buenas tardes means good afternoon in Spanish. In this case you could use a mixed form like hola, buenas tardes as well.

How to say good evening in Spanish?

The evening, just like the dinner, is a very relative concept in Spain. Meanwhile in the UK 7 or 8 p.m is already evening, for Spanish people is still the afternoon. Here’s the proof: if a Spanish guy wants to meet you at 7 p.m he will say “quedamos a la siete de la tarde”?, never “quedamos a las siete de la noche”. La tarde means afternoon, la noche means evening, night. This is why, in some cases, we could say that “buenas tardes” is at the same time “good afternoon” and “good evening”.

How to say goodnight in Spanish?

You can use the Spanish expression buenas noches in two contexts. Either if you want to wish someone a good night or during an official event when the host greets you with the beautiful phrase: Buenas noches, damas y caballeros (Good evening, ladies and gentlemen).

Did you know?

Hello, bye, I love you – these are one of the most searched Spanish words on the Internet. If you have just started your journey with Spanish, you will love the list of Useful Spanish Expressions For Beginners.

When you have learnt to say hello, you should probably learn to say goodbye as well. How to do it in Spanish? Take a look at the next article How to say goodbye in Spanish.