English · Word Candidate

hello

/hɛˈloʊ/

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Also seen as: hellos · helloes · helloing · helloed

Sense 1

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

A greeting (salutation) said when meeting someone or acknowledging someone’s arrival or presence.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Lời chào khi gặp ai đó

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Interjection

Examples

Hello, everyone.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 2

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

A greeting used when answering the telephone.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Lời chào khi trả lời điện thoại

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Interjection

Examples

Hello? How may I help you?

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 3

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

"Hello!" or an equivalent greeting.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Lời chào tương đương

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Noun

Examples

They gave each other a quick hello when they met, and went back on their merry ways.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 4

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

To greet (someone) with "hello".

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Chào ai đó bằng lời chào

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Verb

Examples

She is there guarding and looking after the candy and the children generally, and she helloes and renders an exclamation that Maidie is crossing the street.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “hello” mean?

A greeting (salutation) said when meeting someone or acknowledging someone’s arrival or presence.

Is “hello” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.