LinguaGuten Tag, Hallo, Tschüss: hello and goodbye
German greets by the time of day. Guten Morgen is for the morning, until about ten or eleven; Guten Tag covers the rest of the day; Guten Abend starts at about six in the evening. These three work with everyone – a neighbour, a shop assistant, your boss. Hallo works at any hour, between people who know each other or in a relaxed setting, and friends shorten the morning greeting to a simple Morgen!. Gute Nacht is not a greeting: you say it only to someone who is going to bed. To leave, say Auf Wiedersehen to people you address formally and Tschüss to friends – many people also say Tschüss in shops and cafés. In southern Germany and in Austria you will also hear Grüß Gott, in Switzerland Grüezi.
| Phrase | When | To whom |
|---|---|---|
| Guten Morgen | in the morning, until about 10–11 | everyone |
| Guten Tag | during the day | everyone, especially strangers |
| Guten Abend | from about 6 p.m. | everyone |
| Hallo | any time | friends, family, colleagues |
| Gute Nacht | when someone goes to bed | everyone |
| Auf Wiedersehen | when you leave | strangers, formal situations |
| Tschüss | when you leave | friends, family, often in shops too |
Ich heiße, ich bin, mein Name ist: saying your name
There are three ways to give your name, and all three are correct. Ich heiße + name is the most common: Ich heiße Lena. Ich bin + name is shorter and relaxed: Ich bin Lena. Mein Name ist + name sounds more formal – on the phone or at a reception desk: Mein Name ist Lena Schmidt. Heißen means “to be called”. Its ß is simply a sharp s, and ei sounds like English eye: “HY-sen”. When someone introduces themselves to you, answer Freut mich – “pleased to meet you”, literally “(it) pleases me”.
– Hallo, ich bin Lukas. – Freut mich, ich heiße Mia.– Hi, I’m Lukas. – Pleased to meet you, I’m Mia.
Wie heißt du? Wie heißen Sie? – asking a name
German has two words for “you”. du is for friends, family, children and, usually, other students; Sie is for adults you do not know and for most people at work. The verb changes with them: Wie heißt du? but Wie heißen Sie? Compare the endings: ich heiße, du heißt, Sie heißen – in heißt the s of the ending melts into the ß, so there is no “heißst”. Polite Sie always has a capital S, even in the middle of a sentence, while ich is written small, unlike English I.
– Wie heißen Sie? – Mein Name ist Peter Braun.– What is your name? – My name is Peter Braun.
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| heißen | to be called | Das Kind heißt Max. The child is called Max. |
| der Name | name | Mein Name ist Anna Schulz. My name is Anna Schulz. |
| Hallo | hello, hi | Hallo, Tim! Hallo, Lisa! Hi, Tim! Hi, Lisa! |
| Guten Morgen | good morning | Guten Morgen, Herr Braun! Good morning, Mr Braun! |
| Guten Tag | hello, good afternoon (formal) | Guten Tag, ich heiße Eva Roth. Hello, my name is Eva Roth. |
| Guten Abend | good evening | Guten Abend, Frau Weber! Good evening, Mrs Weber! |
| Tschüss | bye | Tschüss, Paul, bis morgen! Bye, Paul, see you tomorrow! |
| Auf Wiedersehen | goodbye | Auf Wiedersehen, Frau Keller! Goodbye, Mrs Keller! |
| Freut mich | pleased to meet you | – Ich bin Max. – Freut mich, Max! – I’m Max. – Pleased to meet you, Max! |
| ich | I | Ich bin Lea. I’m Lea. |
| du | you (to a friend) | Heißt du Tom? Is your name Tom? |
| Sie | you (polite) | Heißen Sie Müller? Is your name Müller? |
| wie | how | Wie heißt das auf Deutsch? What is that called in German? |
Exercises
This lesson has 10 exercises in the app:
- multiple choice: 3
- match the pairs: 1
- fill the gap: 2
- build the sentence: 1
- translate the sentence: 2
- listen and type: 1
Try the first one
It is eight in the evening and you walk into a restaurant. What do you say to the waiter?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.