Hello in Greek: Every Way to Greet Like a Local

How do you say hello in Greek?

The short answer for how to say hello in Greek is Γεια σου (geia sou, pronounced YAH-soo) to one person you know, and Γεια σας (geia sas, pronounced YAH-sas) to a group or to someone you want to treat with respect. Those two carry you through almost any casual meeting. If you learn nothing else from this page, learn those, and you can walk into a shop, a taverna, or a friend's kitchen and be greeted warmly back.

But hello in Greek is not one single word, and that is what makes it fun. Greek greetings shift with the time of day, with how well you know the person, with how many people are in front of you, and even with whether you are face to face or on the phone. A local does not think about any of this, it is automatic, but for a learner it helps to see the whole map at once. That map has just a handful of roads, and once you have driven each one a few times out loud, choosing the right greeting stops feeling like a decision and starts feeling like a reflex.

Here is the whole set in one glance, before we take each one slowly:

• Γεια σου (geia sou): hi, to one friend. We will keep the plain-English pronunciation coming, so ignore the letters if they look strange for now.
• Γεια σας (geia sas): hello, to a group or politely to one person.
• Καλημέρα (kalimera): good morning, used through the first half of the day.
• Καλησπέρα (kalispera): good evening, used from early afternoon onward.
• Χαίρετε (herete): a polite, slightly formal greeting, literally be glad.
• Εμπρός (embros): hello, but only when you pick up the phone.

Notice that a couple of these overlap in English but not in Greek. The word Greeks reach for depends on context, not just meaning. That is normal for greetings in any language, and Greek simply draws its lines in slightly different places than English does. For a moment it feels like extra work, and then it clicks, because each greeting is tied to a clear situation. The rest of this guide takes them one at a time, gives you the exact sounds, and then puts them into real conversations so you can hear how they fit together.

Yasou: the everyday hello

Γεια σου (geia sou), which everyone romanizes as Yasou and pronounces YAH-soo, is the friendly, everyday hello of modern Greek. It is what you say to a friend, a classmate, a cousin, a child, or anyone roughly your own age in a relaxed setting. It works when you arrive and again when you leave, so it doubles as goodbye, exactly like the English hi and bye rolled into one word. If you hear it in the street, on a beach, or across a cafe table, it almost always means a comfortable, first-name kind of relationship.

The literal meaning is a small delight. γεια (geia) comes from the word for health, and σου (sou) means to you, so you are wishing the other person health every time you greet them. That is why the same phrase serves as both hello and goodbye, and it is why you will also hear it as a toast when glasses clink. You are not saying a neutral hello, you are handing someone a tiny blessing, which tells you a lot about how warmly Greeks treat the act of greeting.

Because sou is the singular you, Γεια σου is aimed at exactly one person, and an informal one. You would use it with a friend but not, in a first meeting, with your friend's grandmother, and not with a group. For those you need the version in the next section. A quick sense check: if you would use a first name and speak casually in English, Yasou fits. If you would say sir, madam, or address several people at once, reach for Yasas instead.

You will also meet a couple of warm cousins of this greeting. Γεια (geia) on its own, just ya, is a breezy hi tossed to a friend in passing. Γεια χαρά (geia hara, roughly ya-hah-RA) mixes health with joy and lands like a cheerful hey there or take care, common when friends part. None of these are formal, so keep them for the people you would hug rather than shake hands with.

Yasas: the formal and plural hello

Γεια σας (geia sas, romanized Yasas, pronounced YAH-sas) is the same warm health-to-you greeting, but pointed either at more than one person or at a single person you want to treat with respect. The only change from the informal version is the ending: σας (sas) is the plural and polite you, where σου (sou) was the singular and familiar you. That one swap, sou to sas, is the whole difference between casual and courteous.

Reach for Yasas in two situations. First, whenever you are greeting a group, no matter how well you know them, because you are addressing several yous at once. Walk up to a table of four friends and you say Γεια σας, not Yasou, even though each of them individually would get the informal version. Second, when you are speaking to one person you should show respect to: someone older, a shopkeeper, a waiter, a doctor, an official, or anyone you have just been introduced to. In those moments Yasas is the safe, polite choice.

This is the reason Yasas is the greeting to default to whenever you are unsure. Using the polite form with someone who would have accepted the casual one is never rude, it just reads as good manners. Using the casual form with someone who expected the polite one can feel a little too familiar, a bit like clapping a stranger on the back. So as a traveler or a beginner, when you are not certain, land on Yasas and you will always be on solid ground. As you get to know people, they will often invite the switch to Yasou, and once that happens you follow their lead.

Both forms flex the same way across the day. You can start a morning greeting formally by pairing it with the time of day, and that brings us neatly to the next set of words, the ones that change with the clock.

Kalimera, Kalispera and time-of-day greetings

Alongside the health greetings, Greeks greet each other by the time of day, and these words are just as common as Yasou. They are warm, they are polite enough for almost any situation, and they are wonderfully easy because they follow one pattern: the word καλό (kalo), meaning good, glued to a piece of the day.

Καλημέρα (kalimera, pronounced kah-lee-MEH-rah) literally means good day and works as good morning. Greeks use it from the moment they wake until the early afternoon, and it is the bright, standard way to open the first half of the day. Say it to the baker, the bus driver, your neighbor on the stairs, a table of coworkers, anyone. It carries no formality problem at all, which is part of why it is so useful: you never have to decide between casual and polite, kalimera simply fits.

Καλησπέρα (kalispera, pronounced kah-lee-SPEH-rah) means good evening and takes over from the early afternoon onward, roughly once the long lunch hours begin. Do not let evening in English mislead you, because kalispera starts far earlier than an English speaker expects, often by mid-afternoon. If you greet someone at four in the afternoon, kalispera is the natural choice, not kalimera. Like its morning twin, it is friendly and polite in one breath, so you can use it with anyone.

Two more members of the family round it out. Καληνύχτα (kalinihta, pronounced kah-lee-NEEH-tah) means good night, but note that it is a parting word, said when you or the other person is heading to bed or leaving for the night, never as a hello. And Καλό μεσημέρι (kalo mesimeri, roughly kah-LO meh-see-MEH-ree) wishes someone a good afternoon or midday rest, a nod to the quiet hours around lunch. That last one is less essential for a beginner, so file it away and lean on kalimera and kalispera for now.

A small point that trips people up: because the exact handoff time between kalimera and kalispera is fuzzy, you will occasionally guess wrong, and it does not matter. If you say kalimera a touch too late in the day, a Greek might gently reply kalispera, and that is a friendly correction, not a scolding. Greet warmly, listen to what comes back, and adjust. Getting the timing perfect is far less important than greeting at all.

Herete: the polite, old-school greeting

Χαίρετε (herete, pronounced HEH-reh-teh, with that first h soft and breathy) is a polite, slightly formal, slightly old-fashioned greeting that means, quite literally, be glad or rejoice. It sits a notch above Yasas in formality and a notch back in time, the kind of greeting you might hear from an older person, in a more traditional shop, or in a courteous, careful register. It is not stiff exactly, but it is dignified, and it carries a faint air of another generation.

As a learner you will hear herete more than you will need to say it, and that is fine. Its main value to you is recognition: when a shopkeeper or an elderly neighbor greets you with herete, you will know you have just been greeted politely and can answer warmly in kind, either by echoing herete or by replying with Yasas. Knowing the word means you will not be caught blank when it lands on you, which is exactly the sort of small thing that keeps a first conversation flowing.

There is a nice historical thread here too. Herete shares a root with the ancient Greek greeting χαίρε (haire), the classic hail or rejoice you might remember from history class, said to one person, with herete as its plural or polite form. Modern Greek keeps this old greeting alive in a gently formal corner of everyday speech, which is part of the charm of the language: you are brushing against words that have been used to greet people on the same streets for a very long time. You do not need to master it to get by, but recognizing it adds a layer of texture to how you hear Greek.

Answering the phone in Greek

Here is a fun quirk that catches almost every learner off guard: Greeks do not say Yasou or Yasas when they pick up the phone. There is a separate greeting for it, and using the right one instantly makes a phone call sound natural instead of textbook.

The classic phone hello is Εμπρός (embros, pronounced em-BROSS). It literally means forward or go ahead, and it works precisely like the English hello on a call: you lift the receiver and say embros to signal you are there and listening. It is the safe, neutral choice for answering a call from a number you do not recognize, and it never sounds wrong.

You will also hear a few common alternatives, and it helps to know them so you are not thrown:

• Ναι (ne, pronounced neh) means yes, and Greeks very often answer the phone with a simple ne, as if to say yes, I am here, go ahead. It feels casual and brisk, and it is extremely common in everyday calls. Do not confuse it with a no, because despite sounding like the English nay, ne means yes.
• Παρακαλώ (parakalo, pronounced pah-rah-kah-LO) means please, and doubles as a polite phone answer, especially in offices and formal settings. Think of it as the courteous receptionist hello.
• Έλα (ela, pronounced EH-lah) literally means come, and among friends who can already see who is calling, it is the warm, familiar way to pick up, roughly hey or go on then. You would only use it when you know who is on the line.

So the rule of thumb is simple. If you are answering a call and do not know who it is, embros or ne both work perfectly. If it is a friend whose name is on your screen, ela is friendlier and more natural. And if you are picking up in a professional setting, parakalo adds a polite gloss. Get these into your ear and the first three seconds of any Greek phone call will sound like you have been doing it for years.

Ti kaneis: how are you and how to reply

A greeting rarely stands alone. In Greek, just as in English, hello is usually chased by some form of how are you, and knowing both the question and a natural answer is what turns a greeting into an actual exchange. The good news is that there are only a couple of questions to learn and a handful of easy replies.

The everyday informal question is Τι κάνεις; (ti kaneis, pronounced tee KAH-nees). It literally means what are you doing, but it functions exactly as how are you does in English, a light, friendly check-in rather than a real inquiry. You use it with the same people who get Yasou: one friend, a peer, someone you are relaxed with. Note the semicolon at the end, because in Greek the semicolon is the question mark.

For a group or for someone you are being polite with, you shift the ending: Τι κάνετε; (ti kanete, pronounced tee KAH-neh-teh). Same meaning, plural or formal you, and it pairs naturally with Yasas. There is also a common alternative built on a different verb: Πώς είσαι; (pos ise, pronounced poss EE-seh) for one friend, and Πώς είστε; (pos iste, pronounced poss EE-steh) for the formal or plural, both meaning how are you in the more direct sense of how do you feel.

Now the replies, because you will hear these questions constantly and want a ready answer. The default is Καλά (kala, pronounced kah-LA), meaning fine or good. Dress it up with thanks and you get the reliable Καλά, ευχαριστώ (kala, efcharisto, pronounced kah-LA, ef-hah-ree-STO), fine, thank you, which is polite and safe in any company. Then bounce the question back with Εσύ; (esi, pronounced eh-SEE) for a friend, or Εσείς; (esis, pronounced eh-SEES) for the polite or plural, both meaning and you. That little return question keeps the exchange balanced and is exactly what a local does.

Here is the whole mini-dialogue you can memorize as one unit, because in real life the pieces always travel together:

• Them: Γεια σου! Τι κάνεις; (Yasou! Ti kaneis?): Hi! How are you?
• You: Καλά, ευχαριστώ! Εσύ; (Kala, efcharisto! Esi?): Fine, thanks! And you?
• Them: Καλά κι εγώ. (Kala ki ego.): I am fine too.

Memorize that four-line loop and you can hold up your end of a greeting from start to finish. It is short, it is real, and it works with almost anyone. If you want to add one more useful phrase, Τι νέα; (ti nea, pronounced tee NEH-ah) means what's new and is a friendly follow-up once the how-are-yous are done.

Casual greetings and everyday extras

Once the core greetings feel comfortable, a few casual extras make your Greek sound lived-in rather than learned. None of these are essential, but they are the small words that friends actually trade, and dropping one at the right moment tells a Greek that you have spent real time with the language.

Start with Έλα (ela, EH-lah), which you already met as a phone greeting. It means come, and it is astonishingly flexible in casual speech. It greets a friend, it means come on when you are urging someone, it expresses surprise like no way, and it softens into oh come on when you are teasing. You will hear it constantly, and while its exact color shifts with the tone of voice, the base sense is always a warm, familiar nudge. Listen for it and you will start to feel its many shades.

Then there is the whole welcoming family built on the word for welcome:

• Καλώς ήρθες (kalos irthes, pronounced kah-LOSS EER-thess) means welcome, literally you came well, said to one person you are close to.
• Καλώς ήρθατε (kalos irthate, pronounced kah-LOSS EER-thah-teh) is the same welcome for a group or in a polite register, the version you will see on signs and hear at a hotel door.
• The natural reply is Καλώς σας βρήκα (kalos sas vrika, roughly kah-LOSS sas VREE-kah), meaning glad to find you here, a graceful way to answer being welcomed.

For introductions, keep Χαίρω πολύ (hero poli, pronounced HEH-ro po-LEE) in your pocket. It means pleased to meet you, literally I rejoice much, and it is the standard, friendly thing to say when you shake a new hand. Pair it with Yasas and your name and you have a complete, polite first meeting: greeting, handshake phrase, introduction, done.

Finally, a couple of tiny courtesy words earn their keep next to any greeting. Ευχαριστώ (efcharisto, ef-hah-ree-STO) is thank you, and Παρακαλώ (parakalo, pah-rah-kah-LO) covers both please and you are welcome. A greeting followed by a thank-you and a please is the difference between sounding like a tourist reading a phrasebook and sounding like someone making an honest effort, which Greeks notice and reward with real warmth.

Pronouncing Greek greetings

Greek pronunciation is friendlier than the alphabet looks, because the language is largely phonetic: letters are pronounced consistently, and once you learn a handful of sound rules, you can read a greeting off the page and say it correctly. A few points cover almost everything you need for the words in this guide. If you want the full letter-by-letter tour, our guide to the Greek alphabet lays out all twenty-four letters and their sounds.

The gamma that turns into y. The letter γ (gamma) is the one that surprises people. Before the e and i sounds it softens to an English y, which is why γεια (geia) is said ya, not gee-ah. Before a, o, and ou it becomes a soft, throaty sound with no clean English match, a little like a gargled g, but for the greetings here the y version is the one that matters most.

The soft, breathy h. The letter χ (chi) is written ch in romanization but is not the ch of church. Before e and i it is a soft h, like the h in the English word hue, which is why Χαίρετε (herete) starts with a gentle HEH. Before a, o, and ou it hardens to the rougher sound in the Scottish loch. In hero poli and efcharisto you will meet both shades.

The ef and ev trick. The pair ευ (eu) is not said oo. Before a soft, voiceless consonant it sounds like ef, which is why ευχαριστώ is ef-hah-ree-STO. Before a voiced sound it becomes ev. You do not need the grammar of it, just the ear: in thank you, it is ef.

Vowels are pure and stress is marked. Greek vowels are clean and open: a as in father, e as in bet, o as in soft, and both i and the letters that sound like it as the ee in see. There are no lazy English vowels sliding around. Just as helpfully, written Greek marks the stressed syllable with an accent, so Καλημέρα tells you plainly to hit the ME: kah-lee-MEH-rah. Land the stress on the right syllable and even a rough attempt sounds convincingly Greek.

Put those together and the greetings fall into place. Yasou is YAH-soo, stress in front. Kalimera is kah-lee-MEH-rah, stress on the third piece. Kalispera is kah-lee-SPEH-rah. Efcharisto is ef-hah-ree-STO, stress right at the end. The single most common beginner slip is putting the stress in the wrong place, so if you are going to drill one thing, drill hitting the marked syllable hard. For a broader plan on getting sounds right in any language, our guide on how to improve your pronunciation gives you a method that works well here.

Worked examples: real conversations

Individual words are the bricks, but conversations are the point, so here are a few short, realistic exchanges that show the greetings working together. Read each one out loud, playing both parts, and you will start to feel how the pieces snap into place.

Meeting a friend in the morning

• You: Καλημέρα! Τι κάνεις; (Kalimera! Ti kaneis?): Good morning! How are you?
• Friend: Καλά, εσύ; (Kala, esi?): Fine, and you?
• You: Καλά κι εγώ, ευχαριστώ. (Kala ki ego, efcharisto.): Fine too, thanks.

Walking into a shop in the afternoon

• You: Καλησπέρα σας! (Kalispera sas!): Good evening! (polite)
• Shopkeeper: Καλησπέρα, παρακαλώ; (Kalispera, parakalo?): Good evening, how can I help?
• You: Ευχαριστώ! (Efcharisto!): Thank you!

Being introduced to someone new

• Friend introduces you: This is Maria.
• You: Γεια σας, χαίρω πολύ. (Yasas, hero poli.): Hello, pleased to meet you.
• Maria: Χαίρω πολύ! (Hero poli!): Pleased to meet you!

Answering a call from a friend

• You: Έλα! (Ela!): Hey! (you saw the caller ID)
• Friend: Γεια! Τι κάνεις; (Yasou! Ti kaneis?): Hi! How are you?
• You: Καλά! Τι νέα; (Kala! Ti nea?): Good! What's new?

Answering a call from an unknown number

• You: Εμπρός; (Embros?): Hello?
• Caller: Γεια σας, μιλάω με τη Μαρία; (Yasas, milao me ti Maria?): Hello, am I speaking with Maria?
• You: Ναι, εγώ είμαι. (Ne, ego ime.): Yes, this is she.

Notice how the greeting choice quietly signals the whole relationship. Ela and Yasou mark friends, Yasas and kalispera sas mark politeness, embros marks a call from a stranger. You are not just saying hello, you are placing the conversation, and once you have run these little scripts a few times out loud they stop being scripts and become the way you naturally open a Greek conversation. If you want a broader plan for building this kind of fluency quickly, our guide on how to learn a language fast puts greetings in their place inside a full routine.

Greek greetings reference table

Here is everything in one place. Keep this open while you practice, and cover the last column to test yourself: see the Greek, say the romanization out loud, then check the meaning.

That table is a lot at once, so do not try to swallow it whole. Learn the top two rows cold, add kalimera and kalispera, then the phone words, then the how-are-you set, and let the extras arrive as you meet them. If you also want to count your way through a market or read prices out loud, our guide to Greek numbers pairs naturally with these greetings for everyday situations.

Practicing your Greek hello out loud

You now have every common way to say hello in Greek, when to use each one, how to pronounce it, and how it fits into a real exchange. The one thing left is the part no article can do for you: saying these words out loud, to something that answers back, until the right greeting comes out without a pause. Reading Yasou and saying YAH-soo so a Greek nods and replies are two different skills, and only the second one lets you actually greet someone.

This is exactly the gap SPAIKING is built to close. It gives you an AI speaking partner that greets you in Greek, replies naturally when you greet it back, and corrects your pronunciation the moment you slip, so you find out in real time whether your kalimera landed on the right syllable or your gamma still sounds like a hard g. You get the two-way pressure of a real conversation, the unexpected reply you have to understand and answer, without needing a patient Greek friend on call at seven in the morning.

A simple way to start: run the little dialogues from this guide with SPAIKING out loud, then let it push you off script with a reply you did not plan for. Greet it with Yasou, answer Ti kaneis with Kala, efcharisto, esi, pick up a pretend call with Embros, and keep going until the words feel like yours. Within a few short sessions the greetings stop being a list you memorized and become the natural way you open a Greek conversation. You can start on the pricing page and say your first real Greek hello today.