To say hello in Mandarin, say 你好 (nǐ hǎo). It's correct with anyone, anywhere, at any time of day. But spend an afternoon in Taiwan and you'll hear plenty of other hellos: a breezy 哈囉, a quick 嗨, 早安 in the morning, and greetings that aren't "hello" at all. Here are the ones worth knowing, when each one fits, and what to say back.
你好: the one that always works
- 你們好nǐmen hǎo · ㄋㄧˇ ˙ㄇㄣ ㄏㄠˇHello (to two or more people)
- 大家好dàjiā hǎo · ㄉㄚˋ ㄐㄧㄚ ㄏㄠˇHello, everyone
你好 is literally "you good". Both syllables are third tones, and when two third tones meet, the first one rises, so in speech it comes out ní hǎo. Dictionaries write nǐ hǎo and expect you to make the change; Lin says it the way people do. Our tones guide covers this change and the few others worth knowing.
Use 你好 with people you don't know: the person at the guesthouse desk, someone you're about to ask for directions, a new classmate. Between friends who see each other every day it can feel a little formal, so friends tend to reach for the casual options below, or just say each other's names.
For a group, 你們 is the plural "you". 大家好, "hello, everyone", is how a teacher, a tour guide or a YouTuber opens.
您好: the polite hello
- 您好nín hǎo · ㄋㄧㄣˊ ㄏㄠˇHello (polite)
您 is the respectful "you". Taiwan's Ministry of Education dictionary describes it as the polite form, used mostly for elders, and gives 您好 as its example (Revised Mandarin Chinese Dictionary). You'll hear it from staff on the phone or at a hotel front desk. Use it yourself with someone much older, or to open a formal message. With people your own age it sounds stiff.
Casual hellos: 哈囉 and 嗨
- 哈囉hā luó · ㄏㄚ ㄌㄨㄛˊHello (casual, from English)
- 嗨hāi · ㄏㄞHi
Both come from English, and both are at home among friends and in messages. The Ministry of Education dictionary lists 哈囉 as a borrowing of "hello" that is now mostly used as a greeting (entry). Its dictionary reading is hā luó, but in conversation it usually sounds close to the English word. 嗨 is simply "hi".
If you're not sure which to use, match the other person. If they say 哈囉, a 哈囉 back is perfect.
Hello by time of day
- 午安wǔ ān · ㄨˇ ㄢGood afternoon
- 晚安wǎn ān · ㄨㄢˇ ㄢGood night
早安 is good morning in Taiwan, and 早 on its own is the quick version for neighbors and coworkers. If your course taught 早上好 (zǎoshang hǎo), that's the mainland habit; it's understood in Taiwan, but 早安 is what you'll hear. 午安 is a polite good afternoon.
晚安 is the one to be careful with. The dictionary defines it as an evening greeting mostly said when parting, so in practice it means good night: you say it when you leave in the evening or go to bed. To greet someone at dinner time, 你好 or 嗨 does the job.
"How are you?" and what to say back
- 最近好嗎？zuìjìn hǎo ma? · ㄗㄨㄟˋ ㄐㄧㄣˋ ㄏㄠˇ ˙ㄇㄚHow have you been?
- 好久不見hǎojiǔ bú jiàn · ㄏㄠˇ ㄐㄧㄡˇ ㄅㄨˊ ㄐㄧㄢˋLong time no see
你好嗎 is in every textbook, and it's correct, but it's a real question rather than a hello. You'd ask it of someone you haven't seen for a while, not the person handing you a coffee. With friends, 最近好嗎 ("how have you been lately?") is more natural, and after a long gap, 好久不見.
Here's how to answer:
- 還不錯hái búcuò · ㄏㄞˊ ㄅㄨˊ ㄘㄨㄛˋPretty good
- 還好hái hǎo · ㄏㄞˊ ㄏㄠˇOkay, not bad
- 你呢？nǐ ne? · ㄋㄧˇ ˙ㄋㄜAnd you?
我很好 is the textbook answer. 還不錯 and 還好 sound more relaxed and everyday. Then pass the question back with 你呢.
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Greetings that aren't hello
A lot of everyday greetings in Mandarin are small questions. Nobody expects a full answer.
- 吃飽了嗎？chībǎo le ma? · ㄔ ㄅㄠˇ ˙ㄌㄜ ˙ㄇㄚHave you eaten? (a greeting)
- 吃飽了chībǎo le · ㄔ ㄅㄠˇ ˙ㄌㄜI have
- 還沒hái méi · ㄏㄞˊ ㄇㄟˊNot yet
吃飽了嗎 isn't an invitation to lunch; it's a friendly check-in, and you'll hear it most from older people. In Taiwan it has a twin in Taiwanese Hokkien, 食飽未？ (tsia̍h-pá--buē?), which appears in the Ministry of Education's Taiwanese dictionary. Hokkien is the language many families in Taiwan speak at home alongside Mandarin; our guide to what language is spoken in Taiwan explains how the two fit together.
- 喂？wèi? · ㄨㄟˋHello? (on the phone)
- 歡迎光臨huānyíng guānglín · ㄏㄨㄢ ㄧㄥˊ ㄍㄨㄤ ㄌㄧㄣˊWelcome (what shop staff call out)
喂 is how you answer the phone. The dictionary reads it wèi, a falling tone; on the phone many people say it with a rise, wéi?, as a question. Face to face, a sharp 喂 means "hey, you!", so keep it for calls.
歡迎光臨 is what staff call out when you walk into a convenience store or a shop in Taiwan. You don't need to answer it. A nod or a smile is plenty, and a 謝謝 on the way out is a nice touch.
Taiwan and the mainland, side by side
The words are mostly shared. The habits, and the characters, differ a little. Taiwan writes traditional characters and the mainland simplified ones, so 你們 is 你们 there. More on that in Taiwan Mandarin vs mainland Mandarin.
| Taiwan | Mainland China | |
|---|---|---|
| Hello | 你好 | 你好 |
| Polite hello | 您好 | 您好 |
| Casual hello | 哈囉, 嗨 | 哈喽, 嗨 |
| Good morning | 早安, 早 | 早上好, 早 |
| Good evening | 你好 (晚安 is good night) | 晚上好 |
| Have you eaten? | 吃飽了嗎 | 吃了吗 |
Either set is understood everywhere. If you learned 早上好, keep it; you'll simply start hearing 早安.
And goodbye
- 拜拜bài bai · ㄅㄞˋ ˙ㄅㄞBye-bye
再見 is the standard goodbye. 拜拜 is English "bye-bye" borrowed whole; the dictionary gives it the reading above, but people usually say it just like the English, and in messages it's often written 掰掰. Leaving a shop, 謝謝再見 ("thanks, bye") covers both at once; our thank-you guide has the rest.
Say it out loud
Greetings are the first thing you'll say in Mandarin and the easiest to get right, because the situation does half the work. Tap the phrases above to hear Lin, say each one back out loud, and pay attention to the ní in 你好. If you read zhuyin, or want to, the zhuyin chart has every sign with its sound.
In Bopomo you speak with Lin, your AI tutor, on a trip around Taiwan: you answer out loud, and she replies to what you actually said. It doesn't score each tone yet, so recording yourself next to her clip is still the best tone check. For the rest of a first trip, start with survival Mandarin for Taiwan.
Questions
How do you say hello in Mandarin Chinese?
你好 (nǐ hǎo), said ní hǎo in speech. It works with anyone, anywhere. 您好 (nín hǎo) is the polite version for elders and formal situations.
How do you respond to 你好?
Say 你好 back. If someone asks 你好嗎 ("how are you?"), answer 我很好 ("I'm good") or 還不錯 ("pretty good"), then 你呢? ("and you?").
What do people in Taiwan say instead of 你好?
Among friends, 哈囉 and 嗨 are common, 早安 or just 早 in the morning, and sometimes a small question like 吃飽了嗎 ("have you eaten?"). 你好 is still always correct.
Do people in Taiwan say 早上好?
They understand it, but in Taiwan the usual good morning is 早安, or 早 among people who see each other every day. 早上好 is the mainland habit.
Keep reading
- How to order at a Taiwan night marketWhat to say at a Taiwan night market stall, from 雞排 and 鹽酥雞 to 臭豆腐 and bubble tea: pointing, asking the price, spice levels, to go or to eat here, with Lin's voice.
- How to say I love you in Mandarin (and what people say)我愛你 (wǒ ài nǐ) is "I love you" in Mandarin, but it's saved for big moments. The softer ways Taiwan says it: 我喜歡你, 我想你, care, and 520.
- How to say thank you in Mandarin (and what to say back)謝謝, 不客氣, 不會 and 多謝: what each one means, when to use it, and how people answer in Taiwan and on the mainland, with audio in a Taiwanese voice.
