Improving your English language skills involves a lot of dedication. And after you’re comfortable enough with basic vocabulary such as “hello”, it’s important to push yourself to the next level and learn how to express yourself in a number of other ways – after all, English language speakers have many different ways of saying the same (or similar) things.

With this in mind, here are some ways to meet, greet and say goodbye in English:

Next video shows some answers to greetings and farewells.

Meetings and greetings

1. Hello, hi, hey

Within the English speaking world, people often say “hi”. Some people also say “hey” – usually when meeting people they are particularly close to or have met many times before.

It’s also important to know that the word “hey” can be used to grab someone’s attention. So, if you’re using it to say “hello” to a person, try to say the word in a calm, relaxed way rather than with emphasis as you might do when trying to make them notice you from afar.

2. How’s it going? How are you doing?

As well as “how are you?” many people also say “how’s it going?” or “how are you doing?” to which the reply might be something like “it’s going well” or “I’m fine/I’m good”.

It’s important to note the pronunciation of “going”. Said quickly, “going” can sound like “go-in”.

3. What’s up? What’s new?

If you bump into someone you’ve not seen in a while, it’s normal to say something like “hey, what’s up” or “hey man, what’s new?” This is an informal way of starting a conversation and showing interest in someone’s life.  While some people will answer with “nothing” or “not much”, others will engage in a little small talk about something interesting that is happening or has happened.

If someone asks you this question, feel free to say as much or as little as you like depending on what’s appropriate at the time. Be aware, however, that in English culture, people don’t typically give away a lot of personal information during a brief, informal or accidental meeting.

3. Good morning, good afternoon, good evening

Instead of saying “hello”, you can say “good morning”, “good afternoon” or “good evening” depending on what time of day it is. To make the greeting less formal, you could also simply just say “morning”, “afternoon” or “evening” with a nod of the head, hand wave or smile. If you want to wish someone well for the night before leaving or sleeping, you can also say “goodnight”.

Saying goodbye

1. Bye!

Instead of “goodbye”, you can quite simply say “bye” or “bye, bye”.

2. See ya, see you soon, hope to see you soon

If you are leaving but plan to meet a person in the near future you can say anything like: “see you” or “hope to see you soon”.

3. Take it easy, take care, take care of yourself

These three ways of saying goodbye encourage the person in question to look after themselves until you see them again. While informal, they are a polite, friendly way to end a meeting.

So, how are you greeting people now, during COVID-19?

Okay! Learn about your preferences and have fun using these greetings now!

For more on greetings click here.