How to Say ‘Hello’ in Simplified Chinese
你好
nǐ hǎo
[nee how]
💬 Usage Tip: Both words are third tone, but when two third tones meet, the first rises: say (ní hǎo), not (nǐ hǎo).
🇨🇳 In China: 你好 is fine with strangers, but with elders or in formal settings use 您好 (nín hǎo), the polite "you". Friends rarely say 你好 to each other and just use a name or 嗨 "hi".
Phrase Breakdown
你
nǐ
[nee]
you
A familiar singular pronoun meaning 'you.'
你好，我是你的新同事。
Hello, I am your new coworker.
好
hǎo
[how]
good; well
Describes something as good, or an action as done well.
这个图形颜色配得好，“好”也说明结果不错。
The colors of this figure are matched well; “good” here also shows the result is nice.
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