Saying Hello in English: What Native Speakers Actually Say (Not What Your Textbook Teaches)

Look, if you're reading this, you probably already know the basic English greetings. "Hello" was likely the first word you learned when you started to learn English. You've been saying hello since your first English class. But here's the thing—there's a good chance you've been taught some greeting patterns that native English speakers... don't really use.

I'm talking about that classic formal greeting your textbook loves:

Yeah, that one. It's technically correct, but it's also weirdly formal for most situations. Native speakers almost never respond with "I'm fine, thank you" in casual situations. They just say "Good" or "Not bad" and move on.

This disconnect between textbook English and real English is exactly why learning from outdated course materials instead of actual content that English speakers consume can mess with your fluency. And it's not just about sounding natural—it's about understanding the many different ways to greet someone depending on the time, the relationship, and the formality of the situation.

The Weird History of "Hello in English"

Before we get into the different ways to say hello, quick history lesson: the word is surprisingly new in Old English terms. It first showed up in writing in 1826, which means Shakespeare never said it, and neither did anyone in colonial America.

Even weirder, "hello" wasn't originally used to greet someone at all. People used it to get someone's attention or express surprise—like "Hello! What do we have here?" It only became the standard way to say hello in the late 1800s when Thomas Edison popularized it to answer the phone.

Fun fact: Alexander Graham Bell, who actually invented the telephone, wanted everyone to answer with "Ahoy!" instead. That didn't catch on, obviously, but imagine if it had. We'd all be walking around greeting people like pirates.

Formal vs. Informal: Ways to Say Hello That Actually Make Sense

Here's where things get tricky with English greetings. "Hello" sits in this awkward middle zone of formality. It's too formal for hanging out with friends or family, but too casual for really formal situations like job interviews or meeting someone for the first time in a professional context.

Informal Ways to Say Hello (friends, people you know well):

These informal greetings work in almost any situation where you're talking to people in different casual contexts. "Hello" would sound oddly stiff with friends unless you're making a joke or being sarcastic.

Neutral greeting (like meeting a new coworker): "Hello" or "Hi" both work fine. This is basically the only time "hello" is the natural first choice. You'd typically add their name: "Hi, Sarah. Nice to meet you."

Formal Greetings in English (job interviews, business meetings):

Depending on the time of day, you'd use different greeting words to show respect in formal situations. Just remember: "Good night" is NOT a greeting in English. It only works when you're leaving. Don't greet someone with "Good night" unless you want confused looks.

What English Speakers Actually Say When Greeting People

After someone greets you with "How are you?" or "How's it going?", here's the way to say it naturally:

They almost never say "I'm fine, thank you. And you?" unless they're being oddly formal. And here's a common phrase you'll hear: when you haven't seen someone in a while, they might say "Long time no see!" That's a casual, friendly way of saying hello to someone after a long absence.

Also, here's something textbooks don't teach: sometimes the greeting isn't really a question. If someone says "Hey, how's it going?" while walking past you, they're not expecting you to stop and start a conversation. Just say "Good, you?" and keep moving. That's normal.

Different Ways to Say "Hello" Across English-Speaking Countries

Once you start watching actual English content—shows, YouTube videos, podcasts—you'll notice people use different ways to greet someone that never show up in textbooks. These greeting examples show how greetings like "hello" vary by region:

American English informal greetings:

British English:

Other English-speaking regions:

You don't need to memorize all these common phrases. Just be aware they exist so you're not confused when you hear native English speakers using them.

When to Use More Formal or Informal Greetings

The way to greet someone depends on the relationship and context, not memorizing rules. Here are basic English greetings for different situations:

Greeting someone for the first time: Stick with "Hi" or "Hello" plus their name. "Hi, Sarah. Nice to meet you." This formal greeting works in almost any situation.

With colleagues or classmates: "Hey" or "Hi" works. "How's it going?" if you want to start a conversation. Morning greetings are usually just "Morning!" without saying "Good morning" fully.

With close friends or family: Basically anything goes. "Yo," "What's up," "Hey," whatever feels natural. These informal ways to say hello can even skip the formal salutation entirely.

In casual situations with strangers (store clerks, waiters): "Hi" or "Hello" is standard. You might add small talk, but it's fine to skip it.

The real language skills aren't about knowing every possible way of saying hello—it's developing a feel for which greeting words fit. And you only get that feel from exposure to how people greet in real contexts.

Why Textbooks Get Greeting in English Wrong

Research on how native speakers actually talk versus what textbooks teach shows some major gaps. Textbooks love presenting greetings without that initial "Hi" or "Hello" that English speakers almost always include. They'll just jump straight to "How are you?" which sounds unnatural.

Textbooks also present way more elaborate exchanges than people actually use. In real life, most ways to greet someone are simple:

Or:

That's it. Three lines max. Not the five-turn conversation your textbook shows. The formality and structure you see in teaching English materials don't match real-world usage.

This is why learning from real content instead of textbooks matters for language learning. You pick up different ways to greet someone naturally, not how course designers think you should greet.

Common to Say: The Most Useful English Greetings

Once you start consuming actual English content, you'll notice these common informal greeting patterns everywhere:

To start a conversation:

Time-based greetings (depending on the time of day):

Casual first meetings:

Reuniting after time apart:

These are like a native speaker's go-to patterns. They mean the same thing at their core—acknowledging someone's presence—but the way to greet changes based on context.

Getting Fluency in Saying Hello

If you want to actually sound like a native instead of robotic when you say hello in English, you need to hear how real people use greetings. Not actors in language learning videos reading scripts, but actual conversations.

This is where learning through immersion becomes important. When you watch English shows or YouTube videos, you're absorbing not just the greeting words but the rhythm, the casualness, the way people in different situations actually interact.

You start noticing stuff like:

You can't learn these different ways to greet someone from a textbook table showing formal versus informal. You need to see many different ways to greet people used naturally—how the synonym "Hi" replaces "Hello" in casual contexts, how a simple "Morning!" works better than the full formal situation greeting.

Anyway, if you want to learn English (or any language) from how people actually speak instead of how textbooks think they should, that's basically what Migaku is built for. The browser extension lets you watch English shows with instant word lookups, so you're learning ways to say hello from real conversations and natural speech patterns. You see greetings like "What's up?" used with friends, "Good afternoon" in meetings, the weird in-between ones in everyday situations.

The mobile app keeps all your vocabulary synced with spaced repetition, and everything you save comes from real content you're actually watching. No textbook dialogues, no "Hello, how are you? I am fine, thank you" nonsense. Just English as it's actually spoken by native speakers.

There's a 10-day free trial if you want to try it. Way more effective than drilling grammar exercises about ways to greet that you'll never actually use.