German grammar › A1
Hello & goodbye — Hallo!
Level A1 · Hallo · Guten Tag · Wie geht’s? · Tschüss · Auf Wiedersehen
What will you learn here?
How to start and end a conversation in German. There is a friendly way (friends, family) and a polite way (shops, offices, people you don’t know).
When you need it
- Every day: neighbours, shops, the bus.
- The first and last thing people hear from you.
Friendly → polite
Hallo! → Guten Tag! · Tschüss! → Auf Wiedersehen!
Examples
- Guten Morgen! Wie geht es Ihnen? — Good morning! How are you? (polite)
- Hallo! Wie geht’s? — Hi! How are you? (friendly)
Remember: Not sure? Be polite — nobody minds.
Watch out: Wie geht’s? is a real question in German — answer it: Gut, danke. Und dir?
Friends → Hallo! · Everyone else → Guten Tag!
German has a friendly way and a polite way. When you are not sure, be polite.
Hello
- Hallo! — Hi! / Hello! — with friends and family
- Guten Morgen! — Good morning! — until about 11 am
- Guten Tag! — Hello! — polite, during the day
- Guten Abend! — Good evening! — from about 6 pm
Hear every word in the app.
How are you?
- Wie geht’s? — How are you? — friendly
- Wie geht es Ihnen? — How are you? — polite
- Gut, danke. Und dir? — Fine, thanks. And you? — friendly
- Gut, danke. Und Ihnen? — Fine, thanks. And you? — polite
Hear every word in the app.
Goodbye and small polite words
- Tschüss! — Bye! — friendly
- Auf Wiedersehen! — Goodbye! — polite
- Bis morgen! — See you tomorrow!
- Danke! — Bitte! — Thank you! — You’re welcome!
- Entschuldigung! — Excuse me! / Sorry!
Hear every word in the app.
- Friendly (du) — friends, family, children, other students
- Polite (Sie) — shops, offices, doctors, older people you don’t know
Talk: meeting your neighbour
It is morning. You meet Frau Weber, your neighbour. Be polite.
- Frau Weber: Guten Morgen! — Good morning!
- You: Guten Morgen! Wie geht es Ihnen? — Good morning! How are you? (polite)
- Frau Weber: Gut, danke. Und Ihnen? — Fine, thanks. And you?
- You: Auch gut, danke. — Fine too, thanks.
- Frau Weber: Schönen Tag noch! Auf Wiedersehen! — Have a nice day! Goodbye!
- You: Danke! Auf Wiedersehen! — Thanks! Goodbye!
Hear every word in the app.
Summary
- Hello — friendly / polite (Hallo! · Guten Tag!)
- How are you? — friendly / polite (Wie geht’s? · Wie geht es Ihnen?)
- Goodbye — friendly / polite (Tschüss! · Auf Wiedersehen!)
Practise this lesson — Practice rounds, a score and your progress are in the free app.
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