Visiting Spain? You need to at least know the basic greetings in Spanish. Here is a guide on the formal as well as informal greeting words in Spanish.
If you have got a chance to visit Spain or any Spanish speaking countries, it may happen that you may not have enough time to learn the language completely. Learning the basic language for a fluent communication requires a lot of time. However, you can quickly catch up the basic phrases in Spanish, which will be helpful to you. Even at formal events, if you try and speak proper and correct expressions in Spanish, you can make a positive and everlasting impression. So, you must be wondering how to learn Spanish fast? Here are some of the basic words used for greetings in the Spanish language.
Basic Expressions in Spanish Language
One of the best things about this language is that the Spanish grammar is relatively easy (as compared to English grammar) and hence, you will be able to learn the language in a very short time. One of the basic rules to remember is that the sound ‘H’ is never pronounced in this language. The basic greeting in Spanish, ‘Hola’, is therefore pronounced as ‘Ola’. So, now let us see how are you in Spanish, along with several other basic phrases.
English Greetings | Spanish Greetings |
Hello! | ¡Hola! |
Good morning! | ¡Buenos días! |
Good day! | ¡Buen día! |
Good evening! | ¡Buenas noches! |
Goodnight | Buenas noches |
Fine | Bien |
Very well | Muy bien |
Thank You | Gracias |
Thank you very much | Muchas gracias |
Welcome | bienvenidos |
Please | Por favor |
Yes | Sí |
No | no |
I am sorry | Lo siento |
Good luck! | ¡suerte! / ¡buena suerte |
Goodbye | Adiós |
One of the best ways to learn Spanish is to speak with the natives and try to catch as many phrases as you can. Here are some more phrases that can be used after using the above mentioned expressions in Spanish. Take a look at the following table.
English Greetings | Spanish Greetings |
How are you? | ¿Cómo está? |
I am good, and you? | ¿Estoy bien, y tú? |
Do you speak English? | ¿Habla usted inglés? |
I only speak Spanish. | Sólo hablo español. |
What’s your name? | ¿Cómo se llama? |
I am Mr. XYZ | Yo soy el Señor XYZ |
I am Mrs. XYZ | Yo soy la Señora XYZ |
It is nice to meet you | Mucho gusto |
It’s my pleasure! | ¡El gusto es mio! |
Where do you live? | ¿Dónde vive? |
I live in Madrid | Vivo en Madrid |
I had a wonderful time | Lo pasé de maravilla |
See you soon | Hasta pronto |
See you later | Hasta la vista / Hasta luego |
Birthday Greetings in Spanish
If you have a Spanish friend/partner and wish to impress him/her by wishing him/her on his/her birthday in Spanish, then here are some of the simple birthday greetings used in this language. You can also go through other interesting and meaningful Spanish sayings:
English Greetings | Spanish Greetings |
Dear (name) | Querido (name) |
My Dear (name) | Mi querido (name) |
Happy Birthday | feliz cumpleaños |
Best wishes for your birthday! | ¡Los mejores deseos para tu cumpleaños! |
Wishing you a wonderful birthday | Deseándote un cumpleaños maravilloso |
A very happy birthday to you from us! | ¡Un cumpleaños muy feliz a ti de nosotros! |
May all your wishes come true | Que todos tus deseos se vuelvan realidad |
May God bless you on your birthday | Que Dios te bendiga en tu cumpleaños |
With love from (name) | Con amor de (name) |
Kisses and hugs | Besos y abrazos |
If you wish to know how do you say I love you in Spanish or convey your feelings to some you appreciate, here is an excellent collection of romantic Spanish phrases and Spanish terms of endearment which will definitely come handy.
Greetings used for Letter Writing in Spanish
Apart from the aforementioned Spanish phrases for travelers, here are some words or salutations / endings in Spanish that are used in formal/informal letters. One of the most important thing to note while writing letters in Spanish is that a colon (:) is given after the name (at the beginning of the letter) instead of a comma.
English Greetings | Spanish Greetings |
Dear (name), | Estimado (name): |
Dear Sir | Estimado señor |
Dear Madam | Estimada señora |
Dear Mr.(name), | Estimado Sr. (name): |
Yours faithfully, | le/les saludo atentamente, |
Your truly, | Un cordial saludo, |
You can also research on the Internet to look for tools that help to learn Spanish fast online. I hope you enjoyed reading and going through these easy phrases in Spanish. Adiós!