"Hola" in English

Quick Answer

Just what is the Spanish word holain English? Hola can be translated as either hello, hi, or hey. Read on to learn more about hola and other ways to greet people in Spanish!

¡Hola! and welcome to our article on hola in English. Hola is one of the simplest ways to greet someone in Spanish, and it can be translated as either hello, hi, or hey depending on the formality of the context. But let’s not just leave it at hola in English. Let’s learn how to use hola in different phrases and contexts!

hola

Basic Phrases with Hola

Here are some phrases in Spanish that use hola:

Spanish	English
Hola. Buen día.	Hello. Good morning.
Hola, ¿cómo estás?	Hello, how are you?
Hola, ¿cómo te llamas?	Hello, what’s your name?
Hola, mi amor.	Hello, my love.
Hola. Mi nombre es Lupe.	Hello. My name is Lupe.
Hola. Mucho gusto.	Hello. Nice to meet you.
Hola, ¿qué tal?	Hi, how are you?
Hola, ¿quién eres?	Hello, who are you?

How can we use these phrases in context? Check out these examples:

examples
Hola, ¿cómo estás? Me alegro de verte aquí otra vez. Hello, how are you? I’m glad to see you here again.
Hola, mi nombre es Nora Rodríguez, y soy tu nueva jefa. Hello, my name is Nora Rodriguez, and I’m your new boss.
Hola, ¿quién eres?¿Te conozco? Hello, who are you? Do I know you?

Other Ways to Greet Someone in Spanish

Hola is not the only way to greet someone in Spanish—far from it! Check out some of the other ways we can greet someone.

Spanish	English	Register
Bienvenido.	Welcome.	Formal
¡Buenas!	Hello!	Informal
Buenas noches.	Good evening./Good night.	Formal or Informal
Buenas tardes.	Good afternoon.	Formal or Informal
Buenos días.	Good morning.	Formal or Informal
¿Qué hay?	What’s up?	Informal, Latin America
¿Qué hubo?	What’s up?	Informal, Latin America
¿Qué tal?	What’s up?	Informal
¡Wepa!	Hey!	Informal, Caribbean Spanish

Let’s take a look at how we can use these phrases in context.

examples
¡Buenas! ¿Qué tal estás? Hello! How are you?
Buenos días, Pablo. Bienvenido a nuestra oficina. Good morning, Pablo. Welcome to our office.
¿Qué hay? No te he visto mucho por aquí. ¿Dónde has estado? What’s up? I haven’t seen around here that much. Where have you been?

holaonphone

How to Answer the Phone in Spanish

In the English-speaking world, we tend to say hello when we answer the phone. You might think that, in Spanish, you answer the phone with hola. You’re right—sort of. Did you know there are several ways to answer the phone in Spanish, depending on where you are? Let’s take a look.

Spanish	Region
¿Aló?	Southern Cone
¿Bueno?	Mexico
¿Diga?/¿Dígame?	Spain
¿Hola?	Throughout the Spanish-speaking world.
¿Sí?	Throughout the Spanish-speaking world.