When you start learning a new language, "hello" is one of the first words you'll need, along with "thank you" and "goodbye". Pretty much everyone knows привет, and you may be tempted to make it your default greeting. If you approach your Russian language learning seriously though, you’ll want to know other basic Russian greetings. By paying attention to formal and informal situations, you’ll appear polite and well-mannered. Don’t we all want to make this impression in a target language?
Today, our American student James and his Russian language instructor Piotr are discussing Russian greetings and inviting you to join them.
Knowing neutral phrases for "hello" is essential. You can hardly go wrong with one of the following Russian greetings, be it in the street or in a circle of same-age individuals who speak Russian.
- Здравствуй, James! Welcome to today’s Russian lesson on greetings.
- Привет, Piotr! The first sentence and I’ve already got two questions. Who is Здравствуй, and why do I need an entire class on how to say "hello" in Russian?
- Well, you’ve answered your questions yourself: we need a whole class because you don’t even know the Здравствуй greeting yet.
- True, but I can deduce that Здравствуй! is a synonym of Привет!
- Look at you, all smart and stuff.
- Hey! I should be the one learning English, so why does it feel like you're the one learning sarcasm from me!
- 'Cuz I'm smart, too. Moving on. Здравствуй! or Здравствуйте! is the most common Russian way to say hello if you want to sound neutral. Unlike the word Привет, which is an informal greeting, Здравствуй! or Здравствуйте! are the best choices in a store, office, or... well, anywhere.
- Здравствуйте is quite the tongue-twister!
- True. It's a hard word if English is your native language. Здравствуйте! derives from this long verb здравствовать and has the literal meaning of "be healthy".
- I'm surprised God's not involved in this one. You had Him in half of the Russian "thank you" phrases.
- Glad you remember our thank you class, James!
- Elephant's memory. Anyways, you mentioned two similar Russian greetings. Which one do I use in which situation?
- Glad you asked, James. You pick either greeting depending on the addressee.
- Wow, "addressee", fancy.
- The rule of thumb is to go for Здравствуй with people for whom you’d use the ты pronoun.
- …which means Здравствуйте! is reserved for the formal Вы?
- Yes, respectful Вы or plural вы.
- Right. Большое спасибо Вам за объяснение, Петр!
- Now you're the one sounding fancy. Не за что, Джеймс!
- Just like in English, you can greet people with "Good morning! / Good afternoon! Good day! / Good evening!" Usually, you’d use Доброе утро! till 11.59 a.m. and Добрый вечер! after 6 p.m. in Russian culture. You can also hear young people say Доброй ночи! (Good night!) as an evening greeting, but that's wrong. "Good night" should be used when going to bed, no exceptions.
- Hilarious! Russian natives get it wrong, and English speakers are expected to do it right. Learning Russian is like riding a roller coaster.
- Oh, just when I thought Mr. Whiny wasn't joining us today.
- Just in time to join Anna Sarcasmina. Back to Russian. Can I use утро!, a shortened version of Доброе утро?
- You can, but it's not утро. In English, you go with the second word, "Morning!" instead of "Good morning!" In Russian, you go for the first one, Доброе! It would be an informal version of the greeting.
- At last, something that makes sense.
- You see, Russian is logical.
- Yeah, don't even, Piotr. Anyway, how do I choose between Добрый день! and Здравствуйте? Are they interchangeable?
- Yes and no.
- It's kind of a yes or no question...
- On the one hand, you can use either as a formal greeting, like in this bar video:
| - Добрый вечер! - Здравствуйте! Меня зовут Анастасия. Сегодня я буду вашим официантом. | - Good evening! - Good evening! My name is Anastasia. I’ll be your waitress tonight. |
On the other hand, there's a minor distinction between these two Russian phrases. You'd opt for Добрый день! if you meet a colleague for the first time that day. You can greet a person with Здравствуйте! multiple times during the day.
- Heh. It's always awkward to see someone for the second time. I just pretend I don't see them. Здравствуйте is my long-needed solution.
- Доброго времени суток! is a greeting you won't find in many other languages. The English equivalent would be "Good time of the day!"
- That sounds so unnatural... but pretty handy nonetheless. I never know which greeting to use when texting a person. Is that the time when I message them or the time they read the message?
- Exactly.
- It would be odd to have this phrase in speech, though.
- You might hear it now and then, but it would acquire an informal undertone.
It's common to greet friends and family in an informal way, which would be frowned upon by casual acquaintances or high society members. Here are some other basic Russian greetings you want to know:
- Let's start the list of informal greeting vocabulary with your favorite Привет! Remember to only use it with people you address with ты.
- Man, I've been saying it all wrong in Russian.
- No worries. Russians give you a pass as long as you’re a foreigner. By the way, we often follow Привет! with Как дела? It literally means "How are things?"
- I know this one, but its pronunciation drives me mad.
- [kahk dee lah]. Listen to this friends’ conversation and try to imitate their pronunciation.
| - Вадим, привет! - Привет, Федь! - Как дела? - У меня все отлично. | - Hi, Vadim! - Hi, Fedya! - How are things? - I’m doing fine. |
- Ok, [kahk dee lah]. Noted. Can I use Как дела? in formal situations too?
- Sure. You’d normally extend the phrase: Как у Вас дела?
- Is Вас the Genitive case for Вы?
- Yes. Your Russian grammar is getting better.
- Thanks, my eighteen hours of study a day are starting to pay off... Oh, and can I say Как у тебя дела?
- Absolutely!
- I'm good, right?
- For sure. No jokes.
- Now I'm wondering if Здравствуй! would work in this Vadim-Fedor conversation?
- Hmm… It would be strange for two close friends. This video dialogue nicely demonstrates when to use Привет! and when Здравствуйте! works better:
| - Привет, мама! Это Антон - Здравствуйте, Антон! - Здравствуйте! | - Hi, Mom! This is Anton. - Nice to meet you, Anton! - Nice to meet you! |
- Anton is a true Russian gent. By the way, I heard Russian people say Приветствую! Is that also "hi" in Russian?
- Be careful with this one. It’s a formal Russian greeting, a so-called Привет! used for highly formal occasions, usually when greeting a large audience.
- Glad I asked. I could’ve ended with Приветствую тебя, красавица! How lame would that pick-up line be...
- The красавица would've received a big laugh.
- Another highly informal way to say "hello" in Russian is Здрасьте!
- This one sounds like a lazy Здравствуйте!
- It's the abridged Здравствуйте! When you say it very fast, that’s what others hear.
- Здрасьте! might become my favorite.
- Make sure you only use this word when you're on pretty familiar grounds with people.
- Здорóво? Are you wishing me health?
- Well, Здорóво! indeed comes from the word "health" – здоровье. You should mind the stress though - Здорóво! not Здóрово.
- "It's levi-oh-sa, not levi-o-sah!" I'm like Ron, sounds the same.
- Then practice your Здорóво! before using it. Здóрово means "good job". You don’t want to reply with a Russian "hi" when someone compliments you on a completed project.
- Man, that’s super challenging.
- It is to Russian language learners for sure. More so, the word Здорóво is very specific. You’ll hardly hear it from a female speaker. It’s used between male friends and is associated with a military way of greeting people.
- I'll pass on this one. Do you have specific Russian words I should use with ladies?
- I recommend sticking with Привет! for this purpose in Russia.
- Piotr: "James, learn 100 ways to say "hello" in Russian, please!". Also Piotr: "James, stick to Привет! it's better".
These informal, slang phrases are reserved for close friends and are often used for online communication.
- Приветик! is baby-talk for "hello" in Russian. It sounds sweet and slightly humorous.
- Exactly what I’m aiming for when I speak Russian to girls.
- Well, you’d better use it only with those girls you know well. And you can save Приветик! for a highly informal situation.
- So many rules. Learning Russian is not a bed of roses.
- I'll tell you more. Приветик! is rarely gotten right by foreigners. You’d better not use it on your first trip to Russia, to be on the safe side.
- Awesome. Another Russian word I've learned to never use. I see that for every ten words I learn, I can only use one.
- The originally French Салют! (Salut) and English Хелло! (Hello) and Хай! (Hi) have penetrated the Russian culture via movies and series.
- Ah, look at those words all cute in Cyrillic characters!
- Right, a Russified version of foreign language greetings.
- You should’ve started with these greetings, Piotr. Why should I even care about learning Здравствуйте! when "hello" works just fine?
Which of the Russian greetings have you liked most of all? James always searches for the easiest ways to express himself in Russian. In turn, his language instructor Piotr does his best to motivate James to learn Russian vocabulary and grammar with all implications. Here are Piotr’s reasons why we all need to master more than simple "Hi!" and "Good afternoon!" in Russian or any new language:
- You’ll make a great first impression as a polite and well-educated individual.
- You’ll immediately appear smart – Russians know how complex their language is and appreciate people who come to lengths to learn Russian.
- You’ll show your respect for Russians as well as the Russian culture and language.
And the final reason especially for James: Approaching Russian girls is easier if you know more than just basic Russian phrases.
Follow Piotr and James with their new conversations in Russian. They’ll entertainingly teach you useful Russian knowledge.
