FORMAL AND INFORMAL GREETING
Formal and informal greetings
Greetings
In Spanish the formality of greetings is more pronounced than in English. In English we might say Good morning, Hi, or Hello to anyone. We know that Good morning tends to be more formal, and Hi tends to be less formal but we tend not to pay much attention to the difference.
In Spanish, they are not as interchangeable. Good morning is for people you would NOT call by first name, and Hi is for people you would call by first name and family members. The Spanish language does not allow the speaker to mix these back and forth between the different groups.
Here is a sample list of greetings.
Formal/Informal | Spanish | English |
Formal |
Buenos días |
Good day/good morning |
Formal |
Buenas tardes |
Good afternoon |
Formal |
Buenas noches |
Good evening |
Formal |
¿Cómo está usted? |
How are you? |
Informal |
Hola |
Hi |
Informal |
¿Qué tal? |
How's it going? |
Informal |
¿Cómo estás? |
How are you? |
Goodbyes
Goodbyes are not quite as rigid as greetings. The Spanish speaker will use most goodbyes to anyone. It is more important that the goodbye say what you want. I for example, “see you later”, is not the same as, “see you soon”.
Here is a sample list of goodbyes.
Spanish |
English |
Hasta luego |
See you later |
Hasta pronto |
See you soon |
Hasta la vista |
Until we see each other |
Hasta mañana |
Until tomorrow |
Nos vemos |
We'll see each other |
Buenas noches |
Good night |
Adiós |
Goodbye |
Notice that they are not divided up onto formal and informal.
- Here are some exercises to help you solidify these concepts.
Exercise 1 - Exercise 2
- https://www.inlandnet.com/~elcid/tutorials/Greetings_and_Goodbyes/Index_Greetings_and_Goodbyes.html