October 4, 2007

When visiting any French-speaking country, one of the first things you want to be able to do is say “hi” in French, as well as “goodbye” to people you meet. Learning how to greet people not only helps in making a good impression, but also allows for smoother and more polite chats.

In this guide, we’ll explore essential French greetings such as bonjour, bonsoir, bonne nuit, and more to help you easily navigate everyday conversations.

A guide to French greetings

French greetings are often made up of the word for “good”, bon(ne) and then the relevant part of the day. Check out one way of saying ‘hi’ in French and also add some more expressions to your vocabulary in the section below:

Bonjour: The All-Purpose Greeting

Bonjour is perhaps the most well-known French greeting. It means “good day” and is used from morning until late afternoon. It’s a polite and versatile greeting suitable for almost any situation.

Whether you’re meeting someone for the first time or greeting a colleague, bonjour is your go-to phrase to say “hello” in French.

Bonsoir: Good evening

As the day moves into evening the way to say “hello” in French changes, bonsoir becomes the greeting to use, usually from 6 pm onwards.

Salut: Casual hello

Another way of saying ‘hi’ in French is using salut. This greeting is perfect for a more informal conversation. It’s akin to saying “hey” in English and is best used among friends, family, or people your age. It’s a great way to keep things casual and friendly.

Would you like to learn the pronunciation of these phrases? In the second episode of Season 1 of the Coffee Break French podcast, you can get more insight into them and also learn other useful phrases.

Listen to it now:

Bonne nuit: Good night

When it’s time to bid someone goodnight, bonne nuit is the phrase to use. This greeting is reserved for late at night when people are heading to bed. It conveys a sense of finality and well-wishing for a good night’s rest.

Bonne journée and bonne soirée: Wishing well

After saying ‘hi’ in French, you might want to wish someone (have) “a good day”, right? Well, to do that you can say bonne journée. This phrase is often used when parting ways in the morning or afternoon, conveying your hope that the person has a good day ahead.

Similarly, bonne soirée is used to wish someone (have) “a good evening”. It’s typically said when you’re leaving in the evening and want to wish the other person well for the rest of the night.

Au revoir: Goodbye

After you say ‘hi’ in French you also need to know how to say goodbye. But how do you say goodbye in French? Well, when it’s time to go, au revoir is the standard way to do it. It’s a polite and versatile phrase suitable for most situations.

Whether you’re leaving a social gathering or ending a business meeting, au revoir fits the bill.

À demain: See you tomorrow

If you plan to see the person the next day, à demain is a perfect farewell. It means “see you tomorrow” and adds a sense of anticipation for the next meeting.

À bientôt: See you soon

To express that you hope to see someone again soon, use à bientôt. It’s a friendly and warm way to indicate that you look forward to the next encounter.

Conclusion

Getting to grips with these French greetings will not only enhance your language skills but also help you when meeting with French speakers. From the versatile bonjour and bonsoir to the friendly way to say ‘hi’ in French – salut – as well as à bientôt, these phrases will ensure you make a positive impression in any interaction.

So, practise these greetings, and soon, they’ll become a natural part of your everyday conversations. By integrating these key phrases into your vocabulary, you’ll be well-equipped to navigate the French-speaking world with more confidence and ease. How about learning how to say where you are from in French? Read the blog post we prepared to help you with that now!

When you start learning a language, either for business or pleasure, it is important to know a few basics. Whether you are visiting a French-speaking country to attend a conference, enjoying a relaxing time by the beach or greeting your friend, being able to say ‘hi’ or ‘how are you’ in French is essential.

After all, everyone likes to be polite, and when you initiate a conversation with the locals in their native tongue, every interaction tends to run smoothly. To help you with that, in this article, you will learn how to say hi, ask people how they are doing and also reply to them in French.

Keep reading to find it out!

How to say ‘hi’ in French?

First things first… Before you need to ask ‘how are you’ in French, you must start the conversation. And to do that we usually use a greeting like ‘hi’ or ‘hello’, right? But how do you say it in French?

The simplest way possible is saying salut, which means hi or hello. This format is a casual way to greet friends, peers, or acquaintances. So you could say something like that to greet someone:

Salut ! Hi/Hello!
Salut, Sarah ! Hi/Hello, Sarah!

How to say ‘how are you’ in French?

Well, now that you are already familiar with the way you can start a conversation, it is time to learn how to say ‘how are you’ in French. There are several ways to inquire about someone’s well-being… Let’s check some out:

Comment ça va ?

This is perhaps the most standard and widely used way to ask ‘how are you’ in French. It translates directly to ‘How’s it going?’ and is suitable for both formal and informal situations.

Ça va ?

It is a shorter version of the phrase we have above. This is a more casual way of greeting people. It is like asking ‘You good?’, but it literally means ‘That’s going?’. It’s commonly used among friends in informal settings.

Ça roule ?

This expression is something like slang in French and is more commonly used among young people. Therefore, it is a very colloquial way of asking ‘how are things?’. Usually, you will hear close friends asking each other that.

Would you like to learn the pronunciation of these phrases? In the first episode of Season 1 of the Coffee Break French podcast, you can get more insight into them and also learn other useful phrases. Listen to it now:

How do you answer ‘how are you’ in French?

Very good! Now you already know how to say hi and ‘how are you’ in French. But how can you answer someone’s reply to your questions? In a casual situation, they will probably do it by adding et toi ?, which means what about you? at the end of their answer.

Let’s figure out some answers that people might give you and you might give them:

Ça va bien

This response translates to ‘I’m doing well’ and is a pretty straightforward way to reply in situations where you’re feeling good.

Ça va très bien

If you want to say you are doing even better, you can say ça va très bien. As expected, that means that things ‘are going very well’.

Je suis en forme

This is a more complex structure, but we will make it simpler for you. Je suis means ‘I am’ and en forme means ‘on form’. Therefore, with this statement, you say you are on form and feeling good.

In case learning more French is on your plans, be aware that ‘je suis’ is a very important phrase and you will come across it several times! After all, you use the structure ‘I am’ to express a lot of important things, like your nationality, your age and lots more.

Ça ne va pas

The same thing as ça va, isn’t it? But it means the complete opposite – ‘things aren’t going well’. You might have noticed that we have ‘ne …. pas’ in this case. We use these terms to make something negative in French.

Your French 101 session is over for today!

By learning how to say ‘hi’ and ‘how are you’ in French, you’ll be better equipped to initiate conversations and engage with French speakers. After all, it is not only a polite gesture but also an essential skill for effective communication.

Remember, language learning is a journey, and every word and phrase you learn brings you one step closer to fluency. So, practise these questions and responses and listen to the podcast we have in this blog post to improve your pronunciation.

And if you want to keep improving your basic vocabulary, check out this article on the different ways of greeting people in France depending on the time of day!

‘Hi’ in French and other greetings – A guide