Listen to the native speakers greeting each other, and then go ahead and practice saying each Chinese phrase aloud. Once you’re feeling confident with Chinese greetings you’ll learn some different ways to say goodbye in Chinese as well. It’s important to get the basics right, and the Mandarin Chinese-speaking people you meet will really appreciate your efforts. You know you’re saying it correctly if they keep talking, expecting you to keep up!
When you meet people for the first time and are introduced to them and have made some new friends, you should say nǐ hǎo (你好). It is a very efficient way to show your respect, break the ice and start a conversation. Whereas between close friends, you might as well start by saying nǐ jīntiān hǎo ma? (你今天好吗？) or zuìjìn zěnme yàng? (最近怎么样？), which means how are you today and how is it going recently.
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As Chinese is not that formal of a language compared to German or Japanese, you can choose which way you would like to greet people according to the occasions or who they are. Basically those are what you can use at any time of the day.
There are also some other ways of greeting, depending on what time of day it is. If you meet people in the morning, you can say shàngwǔ hǎo (上午好) (Good morning). If you meet people in the afternoon, you can say xiàwǔ hǎo (下午好) (Good afternoon). And if it is in the evening, you can say wǎnshang hǎo (晚上好) (Good evening).
Remember, those are used when you meet people and before starting a conversation. What do Chinese people say after the conversation? There are not as many choices. They normally say zàijiàn (再见), suitable for any time, any occasions. Or if it is late at night, people also say wǎn'ān (晚安), which means good night.
Pronouncing Chinese greetings
Practice Your Pronunciation With Rocket Record
Those are the greetings widely used by Chinese people nationwide. Sometimes, between really close friends, when they see each other, instead of the usual greetings we have mentioned above, they might as well say chīlema? (吃了吗？) It literally means have you had your meal?
You might feel it is weird, wondering why they would like to know whether people have had their meals and even use that as a greeting. It is just a part of Chinese culture for people to show their concern for their close friends and express their hospitality at all times. This also shows how big a deal gastronomy is in Chinese culture.
If they receive méi yǒu (没 有) (No, I haven't had my meal yet) as an answer, they might offer a meal with the friend. But normally people will reply with chī le (吃 了) (Yes, I had) because they know their friends will offer if they say méi yǒu 没有() and they simply don't want to bother their friends.
That's it for today's lesson. Using different greetings will make you sound more fluent, so try to remember as many as you can.
If you want more lessons on Chinese salutations then I recommend that you check out the following:
- Chinese Salutations.
- Learn to say Goodbye in Chinese.
- Saying hello in Chinese will get you far!
回头见！Huítóu jiàn!
Lin Ping: Rocket Chinese