There are stacks of how to say “hi there” in Spanish—and so they’re not the identical throughout each Spanish-speaking nation.
With almost 130 million folks calling Mexico their house, Mexican Spanish is essentially the most broadly spoken variant on the earth, and it has some fairly distinctive slang.
To get good at Mexican Spanish, step one is studying the best way to say hi there like an area.
On this publish, we’re going to cowl Mexican Spanish greetings in all kinds of social situations, from a proper encounter with a stranger to assembly new associates within the native cantina (bar).
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Formal Greetings in Mexican Spanish
So, let’s begin with the fundamentals.
A number of the first phrases you’ll say to most individuals whenever you meet them are buenos días (good morning). It’s a well mannered and common greeting that works with anybody.
This greeting adjustments in line with the time of day, so you’d use buenos días (good morning) till midday, buenas tardes (good afternoon) between midday and sundown and buenas noches (good evening) after sundown.
Discover how the adjective buenos (good) adjustments to agree with the quantity and gender of the noun it describes.
In terms of assembly folks in a proper scenario in Mexico, there are some key suggestions and vocabulary to recollect:
1. Use usted (formal model of you)
Like in castellano (the Spanish spoken in Spain), usted is essential to point out respect. Use it to deal with an individual who you don’t know, who’s older than you or who’s able of authority over you.
So, let’s say you’re at a college and also you’re launched to one of many professors. A college professor is prone to fall into all three classes, so that you’d positively name her or him usted.
Right here’s an instance of the best way to greet them:
¡Hola! Qué gusto conocerlo.
Good day! What a pleasure to satisfy you.
Notice: Conocerlo is used whenever you’re chatting with a person. To a lady, you’d say, “Qué gusto conocerla” (what a pleasure to satisfy you). It’s because the direct object pronoun lo/la has to agree with the gender and variety of whomever you’re speaking to.
2. Use Señor(a) (Mr./Mrs.) as a substitute of the individual’s first identify
For anybody who you’d usually name usted, it wouldn’t be well mannered to deal with them utilizing their first identify. All the time name them Señor / Señora till they invite you to make use of their first identify.
For instance:
Hola, señor Ruíz. ¿Cómo le va?
Good day, Mr Ruíz. How’s it going?
If you realize the individual has a career, exchange señor(a) with their title:
Buenos días, profesor González.
Good morning, Professor González.
Excellent.
Now, let’s say you’re searching for somebody you’ve not personally met earlier than, and that you must examine should you’re chatting with the correct individual. On this case, you’d say:
Disculpe, ¿es usted la doctora García?
Excuse me, are you Dr. García?
Disculpe (excuse me — formal) is a brilliant helpful phrase, as it may be utilized in any scenario with an grownup you don’t know. When speaking to somebody your personal age or youthful, disculpa (excuse me — casual) is the much less formal possibility.
3. Formal vocabulary for assembly new folks
¿Cómo está?
How are you?
Muy bien, ¿y usted?
Very properly, and also you?
¡Que tenga un buen día!
Have an important day!
Mucho gusto en conocerlo / conocerla.
Good to satisfy you. (male / feminine acquaintances)
Igualmente.
Likewise.
Que le vaya bien.
Have a pleasant day!
¡Adiós!
Goodbye!
4. All the time shake fingers!
It’s a cultural expectation that when Mexicans meet one another to spend time collectively (i.e. something greater than a quick passing), they’ve some type of bodily contact.
Formal introductions are not any exception. Alongside your greeting, be sure you embody a handshake should you name the individual usted (you — formal). Shake fingers whenever you depart as properly.
Right here’s a prime tip: should you’re launched to a room full of individuals, greet and shake fingers with every individual individually. Greeting the group as an entire would appear impolite.
Casual Greetings in Mexican Spanish
Casual chat is the place Mexican Spanish comes into its personal. You’ve in all probability heard many Mexican slang phrases from TV exhibits or motion pictures!
Since Mexican greetings can vary from being extraordinarily formal to humorous and informal, figuring out when to say them is essential. You’ll be able to be taught when to make use of them by familiarizing your self with Spanish media, or utilizing a language studying program like FluentU.
FluentU makes use of clips from genuine telenovelas, music movies and extra to show widespread Spanish phrases. It permits you to be taught phrases and phrases in context, with Mexican slang and regional expressions included too.
To begin with, listed below are some phrases you’ll want when assembly associates of associates, associates’ members of the family or just about anybody in an informal setting:
1. Use tú with associates, household and folks you realize
As we all know, tú is the casual strategy to deal with folks in Spanish, and that is true in Mexico as properly. Use it for any informal, casual scenario—assume assembly folks at a celebration, making associates in a cantina (bar) or any scenario the place there’s no sense of hierarchy amongst folks.
Listed here are some examples of tú (you — casual) types in motion. Why not evaluate them to the usted (you — formal) variations earlier?
¡Hola! Qué gusto conocerte.
Hello! What a pleasure to satisfy you.
Oye, Juan. ¿Cómo te va?
Hey, Juan. How’s it going?
¿Cómo estás?
How are you?
Muy bien, ¿y tú?
Very properly, and also you?
¡Que tengas un buen día!
Have an important day!
Mucho gusto en conocerte.
Good to satisfy you.
Igualmente.
Likewise.
Que te vaya bien.
Have a pleasant day.
2. Further casual phrases
Why not add a few bonus phrases to your vocabulary record?
Cuídate.
Care for your self.
¡Nos vemos!
See you quickly!
So now that you simply’ve made some Mexican associates, you may greet them with a number of Mexican slang phrases the subsequent time you see them. Let’s be taught some!
The most well-liked is ¿qué onda? (what’s up?), to which they could reply aquí nomás (simply chilling) or nada, todo tranquilo (all’s good).
If all the things’s additionally going properly with you, you possibly can reply with también aquí (identical right here).
Identical to in English, there are a ton of various methods to say “what’s up” in Mexican Spanish. Listed here are only a handful:
¿Qué tranza?
What’s up?
¿Qué rollo?
(Just like the Irish phrase “What’s the craic?”)
¿Qué hay de nuevo?
What’s new?
¿Qué cuentas?
What’s new?
Why not observe a few of these the subsequent time you’re at a celebration in Mexico?
3. Mexican slang phrases to your associates
Mexican Spanish is stuffed with affectionate phrases for associates. Maybe you’ve heard of a few of these:
It’s completely regular to listen to associates greeting one another utilizing these phrases. Listed here are a few examples of the way you would possibly hear them:
Oye, carnal, ¿qué hay de nuevo? (Hey brother, what’s new?)
Hola güey, ¿qué onda? (Hey dude, what’s up?)
4. Pleasant gestures like handshakes and air kisses
Like with formal interactions, whenever you’re assembly somebody for greater than a quick “hi there,” there will probably be a type of bodily contact to accompany it.
In casual conditions, this will look completely different relying on the gender of the individual you’re assembly.
Males greet different males with a agency handshake. Shut male associates or members of the family may also hug one another after the handshake.
When feminine associates or members of the family greet different girls, they offer one another an air kiss (besito) on the correct cheek. Women and men greeting one another additionally use air kisses.
So, with this in thoughts, there gained’t be any extra awkward moments the place you’re deciding whether or not to kiss somebody or shake their hand!
Now to place your newfound greeting expertise to the take a look at.
Mexico is a pleasant place. Some of the attention-grabbing elements of dwelling in Mexico is how folks greet one another each time they cross on the street, even when they run into one another a number of occasions a day!
It’s thought of impolite to not greet somebody you stroll previous. In the event you can’t cease to speak, greet the opposite individual with a fast “Adiós” (goodbye) and so they’ll know that you simply’ve acquired someplace to be.
Keep in mind, even a fast stroll round a Mexican village can result in a lot of alternatives to say hi there.
Obtain:
This weblog publish is out there as a handy and transportable PDF that you simply
can take anyplace.
Click on right here to get a replica. (Obtain)