Greetings and farewells: hello, goodbye, Happy New Year
Saying hello
When we see someone we know, we usually exchange greetings:
Good morning/afternoon/evening
Hello
Morning
Hi
Hi there
| more formal less formal |
A:
Hi.
B:
Hello, how are you?
A:
Fine, thanks. How about you?
Saying goodbye
When we leave people, we usually say something as we leave:
Good night
Goodbye
Bye bye
Bye
See you later
See you
| more formal less formal |
A:
See you later.
B:
OK. Bye.
Warning:
We use Good night only when we are leaving someone at the end of the day, before going home or going to bed: [leaving someone’s house] Good night. Thanks for a lovely evening.
[before going to bed] I’m off to bed. Good night.
Congratulating and celebrating
We use different expressions for celebrations:
on special occasions | Happy New Year!
Happy birthday!
| to wish someone luck before an important event | Good luck!
| to congratulate someone | Well done!
Congratulations! (more formal)
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We don’t say congratulations to wish someone a happy birthday: Happy birthday, Nora.
Not: Congratulations, Nora.
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