Greetings

In Mandarin Chinese, a common greeting is:

你好 (nǐ hǎo) — “Hello”

• 你 (nǐ) — you

• 好 (hǎo) — good

Extended Greetings:

• 早上好 (zǎo shàng hǎo) — Good morning

• 下午好 (xià wǔ hǎo) — Good afternoon

• 晚上好 (wǎn shàng hǎo) — Good evening

Greetings & Answers

1. 你好 (nǐ hǎo) — “Hello”

Reply: 你好 (nǐ hǎo) — “Hello” back.

2. 早上好 (zǎo shàng hǎo) — “Good morning”

Reply: 早上好 (zǎo shàng hǎo) — “Good morning” back.

3. 最近怎么样？ (zuì jìn zěn me yàng?) — “How have you been?”

Reply:

• 我很好，谢谢。你呢？ (wǒ hěn hǎo, xiè xiè. nǐ ne?) — “I’m good, thank you. And you?”

• 还可以 (hái kě yǐ) — “It’s okay.”

• 不太好 (bú tài hǎo) — “Not too good.”

Dialogue

Conversation in Mandarin with different ways to say “how are you” and the flow leading to “I need to go.”

Dialogue:

A: 你好！(nǐ hǎo!) — Hello!

B: 你好！(nǐ hǎo!) — Hello!

A: 最近怎么样？(zuì jìn zěn me yàng?) — How have you been lately?

B: 我挺好的，谢谢！你呢？(wǒ tǐng hǎo de, xiè xiè! nǐ ne?) — I’m doing quite well, thank you! And you?

A: 你今天过得怎么样？(nǐ jīn tiān guò dé zěn me yàng?) — How’s your day going?

B: 还不错，就是有点忙。(hái bú cuò, jiù shì yǒu diǎn máng.) — Not bad, just a bit busy.

A: 最近身体怎么样？(zuì jìn shēn tǐ zěn me yàng?) — How’s your health?

B: 还可以，不过有点累。(hái kě yǐ, bú guò yǒu diǎn lèi.) — It’s okay, but I’m a bit tired.

A: 你要去哪儿？(nǐ yào qù nǎr?) — Where are you going?

B: 我要去公司加班。(wǒ yào qù gōng sī jiā bān.) — I’m going to the office to work overtime.

A: 什么时候回来？(shén me shí hòu huí lái?) — When will you be back?

B: 应该晚上七点左右吧。(yīng gāi wǎn shàng qī diǎn zuǒ yòu ba.) — Probably around 7 PM.

A: 我得走了。(wǒ děi zǒu le.) — I need to go.

B: 好吧，路上小心！(hǎo ba, lù shàng xiǎo xīn!) — Okay, take care on the way!

A: 好的，再见！(hǎo de, zài jiàn!) — Okay, goodbye!

B: 再见！(zài jiàn!) — Goodbye!