Theory
Before you can say anything in Spanish, you need greetings — they open every conversation. Spanish speakers take courtesy seriously: walking into a shop, answering the phone, or meeting someone for the first time all follow predictable patterns. Learn these phrases cold and you will immediately feel at ease in any Spanish-speaking environment.
Greetings — Saying Hello
Spanish has both a universal greeting and time-based greetings. Use whichever fits the moment.
hola — the all-purpose hello, used at any time of day, in any situation. Informal but universally acceptable.
buenos días — good morning. Used from waking until roughly 12:00–13:00.
buenas tardes — good afternoon / good evening. Used from about 13:00 until dark.
buenas noches — good evening / good night. Used after dark, both as a greeting and a farewell.
Note: In casual speech, Spaniards often shorten buenas tardes and buenas noches to just buenas — a friendly, catch-all greeting used at any time of day.
- ¡Hola! ¿Qué tal? — Hi! How's it going?
- Buenos días, señora Pérez. — Good morning, Mrs. Pérez.
- Buenas tardes, ¿en qué puedo ayudarle? — Good afternoon, how can I help you?
- Buenas noches a todos. — Good evening / Good night, everyone.
- ¡Buenas! ¿Todo bien? — Hey! Everything good? (casual, any time)
Farewells — Saying Goodbye
Spanish has several ways to say goodbye depending on when you expect to see the person again.
adiós — the standard goodbye. Final, used when you do not expect to see the person soon.
hasta luego — see you later. The most common everyday farewell; does not mean you will meet later that day specifically.
hasta mañana — see you tomorrow. Used when you will actually see the person the next day.
hasta pronto — see you soon. Implies you will meet again in the near future.
Tip: In Spain, chao (from Italian ciao) is extremely common as an informal goodbye among friends.
- Adiós, que te vaya bien. — Goodbye, take care.
- ¡Hasta luego! Fue un placer. — See you later! It was a pleasure.
- Hasta mañana, descansa. — See you tomorrow, get some rest.
- ¡Hasta pronto! Te llamo. — See you soon! I'll call you.
Courtesy — Please, Thank You, Sorry
These three phrases will carry you through almost any awkward situation.
por favor — please. Placed at the end of a request in Spanish (unlike English where it can go at the beginning or end): Un café, por favor.
gracias — thank you. Mucho gusto means 'nice to meet you', but muchas gracias means 'thank you very much'.
de nada — you're welcome. The standard response to gracias.
perdón — sorry / excuse me. Used to apologise for a small mistake or to get someone's attention.
disculpe — excuse me (formal). Used to address strangers politely, e.g. to ask for directions.
sí and no work exactly as in English. Note that sí (yes) carries a tilde to distinguish it from si (if).
- Un café con leche, por favor. — A white coffee, please.
- Muchas gracias por todo. — Thank you very much for everything.
- —Gracias. —De nada, con mucho gusto. — —Thank you. —You're welcome, with pleasure.
- Perdón, ¿puede repetir más despacio? — Sorry, could you repeat more slowly?
- Disculpe, ¿dónde está la estación? — Excuse me, where is the station?
Introductions — Who Are You?
Meeting someone for the first time follows a simple script in Spanish.
¿Cómo te llamas? — What is your name? (informal, using tú)
¿Cómo se llama usted? — What is your name? (formal, using usted)
Me llamo... — My name is... (literally: I call myself...)
Mucho gusto — Nice to meet you. Said by both people when introduced.
Encantado / encantada — Delighted to meet you. The speaker chooses -o (male) or -a (female) based on their own gender.
The informal/formal distinction is important: use tú with peers, friends, and children; use usted with strangers, older people, and in professional settings.
- ¿Cómo te llamas? Me llamo Lucas. — What's your name? My name is Lucas.
- Mucho gusto, soy Ana. — Nice to meet you, I'm Ana.
- Encantado de conocerte. — Delighted to meet you. (said by a male speaker)
- Encantada, igualmente. — Delighted, likewise. (said by a female speaker)
How Are You? — The Full Exchange
After greeting someone, it is polite to ask how they are. Here are the most common patterns:
¿Cómo estás? — How are you? (informal)
¿Cómo está usted? — How are you? (formal)
¿Qué tal? — How's it going? (very casual, extremely common)
Typical responses:
bien — fine / well
muy bien — very well
mal — bad
más o menos — so-so
no muy bien — not very well
Always follow with ¿Y tú? (and you?) or ¿Y usted? (formal) — it is impolite not to ask back.
- ¿Cómo estás? —Muy bien, gracias. ¿Y tú? — How are you? —Very well, thanks. And you?
- ¿Qué tal? —Más o menos, ¿y tú? — How's it going? —So-so, and you?
- ¿Cómo está usted? —Bien, gracias, ¿y usted? — How are you? (formal) —Fine, thank you, and you?
Forms of Address — Señor, Señora
When addressing strangers or people in a professional context, Spanish uses titles:
señor (Sr.) — Mr. / sir. Used with or without the last name.
señora (Sra.) — Mrs. / ma'am. Used for adult women regardless of marital status in most contexts.
señorita (Srta.) — Miss. Used for young women, though less common today.
These titles are used without don't — unlike English, you do not say 'Señor John'. You either say 'Señor García' (with surname) or simply 'señor' (without name).
- Buenos días, señor director. — Good morning, sir / Mr. Director.
- Señora, ¿puedo ayudarle? — Ma'am, can I help you?
- Disculpe, señorita, ¿tiene hora? — Excuse me, miss, do you have the time?