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Shadowing practice: 20 Ways To Say Hello In British English | Easy English 56

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  1. Hello, welcome to Easy English.0:00
  2. Today I want to discuss the most important word in the English language.0:02
  3. Hello!0:10
  4. Our greetings have developed over time and there are a vast array of ways to greet and respond to people in casual and formal interactions.0:11
  5. We'll show you a few scenarios with 20 alternative ways to say hello and options for responses for when meeting people in Britain.0:20
  6. Initially, the greeting good day was most commonly used and if you look at most languages they still retain good day as a formal greeting.0:29
  7. But nowadays, good day is rarely used in English.0:38
  8. The word hello became the cultural norm for all formal and casual meetings after being the advised greeting for the invention of the telephone.0:41
  9. Fun fact, the first suggested greeting for hello was a hoi hoi, which is still how Mr Burns answers the phone in The Simpsons.0:49
  10. So, if we remove hello from the equation, what are the other ways to greet someone and what are the responses?0:57
  11. Let's start at work.1:05
  12. If you need help keeping up with this episode, you could consider checking out our Patreon page.1:07
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  1. You can choose from three levels of perks.1:12
  2. The first level gives you reading materials such as transcripts and vocabulary lists, all related to the relevant episode that you're watching.1:14
  3. Now back to the episode.1:22
  4. For a formal greeting to a boss or manager, you might want to start with...1:24
  5. Good morning.1:30
  6. Good afternoon.1:33
  7. Mmm, good evening.1:36
  8. This can even be shortened to just...1:40
  9. Morning.1:43
  10. Afternoon.1:45
  11. Evening.1:47
  12. The response to this greeting is to repeat the same greeting back.1:48
  13. Morning.1:54
  14. Afternoon.1:55
  15. Evening.1:56
  16. Okay, so what about meeting a stranger?1:57
  17. You could stick with your good mornings or afternoons, but you might want to go a bit more casual with your greeting.2:00
  18. You could try options like this...2:07
  19. Hi.2:10
  20. Hey.2:13
  21. Hiya.2:14
  22. If you're seeing someone again who you would still consider a stranger, you could combine these or even just start with these questions.2:15
  23. Down!2:24
  24. Down!2:25
  25. Down!2:26
  26. How are you?2:28
  27. How's it going?2:29
  28. How you doing?2:31
  29. Generally, the response to these three questions will be short.2:32
  30. If you agree to this way, summarize how your day or week is.2:36
  31. Yeah, I'm good thanks.2:41
  32. Not bad thanks.2:43
  33. Pretty good thanks.2:44
  34. Not so good.2:47
  35. You can then use one of the three questions from before to greet them back and then possibly open up into a conversation.2:49
  36. So, what have you been up to?2:56
  37. So, how do you casually greet a friend if you don't use hello?2:59
  38. Here are some more options.3:04
  39. What's up?3:09
  40. You alright?3:14
  41. What's going on?3:21
  42. These are all interesting phrases as in principle they're questions.3:24
  43. However, you don't have to respond to them like they're questions.3:28
  44. Look at them as quick ways to greet someone whilst also showing you care how the person is without them having to give you a long response similar to the3:32
  45. old greeting of...3:41
  46. How do you do?3:43
  47. The response can be as easy as repeating the same thing back.3:45
  48. This makes these phrases super quick for when you don't have time on your hands.3:49
  49. You alright?4:01
  50. Lastly, how could you greet an old friend or colleague you haven't seen in a while?4:07
  51. Nice to see you.4:15
  52. Long time no see.4:26
  53. And now a strange one.4:35
  54. Without the use of words, a good way to greet Brits with just a facial expression is a raise of the eyebrows and a tilt of the head.4:37
  55. There you go.4:55
  56. There's 20 ways for you to greet someone in Britain.4:56
  57. Let me know how you get on and if you have any more in the comments below and we'll see you next time.4:59
  58. Bye.5:04
  59. What's going on?5:07
  60. Good evening.5:14

British English Pronunciation Practice: 20 Ways to Say Hello

This Easy English lesson is a single host walking through the history and range of British greetings, from the old formal "good day" to the casual "hiya" people actually use today. It sits at B2, and the host moves at 195 words per minute, faster than most of the catalogue, so the lines arrive close together and reward more than one listen.

It is a good pick for english speaking practice because almost every line is something you would actually say to a colleague or a stranger this week, not scripted dialogue built for a textbook. The British accent is clear and unhurried in delivery even at that pace, which makes it a solid entry point for british english pronunciation practice before you move to faster native footage.

The Language in This Clip: Formal Mornings to Casual Hiya

The lesson works in layers, moving from workplace formality down to strangers on the street, and the wording changes with each step.

  • "a vast array of ways to greet and respond to people" sets up the whole lesson: notice the stress falls on "vast array", not on the smaller words around it, which is the shape to copy when you shadow this line.
  • "how Mr Burns answers the phone in The Simpsons" is a throwaway cultural reference inside the hoi hoi story. Say it at normal speed and you will feel how names and titles get compressed compared to reading them cold.
  • "How's it going?" and "How you doing?" are the two casual check ins the host lists after "Hi", "Hey" and "Hiya". Both drop weight onto "going" and "doing" rather than the question words, which is the opposite of how a beginner reads them off a page.
  • "Yeah, I'm good thanks." is the model reply. It is short on purpose. Matching its length, not just its words, is part of sounding natural when you improve english speaking for daily use.

How to Work Through the Easy English Greetings Lesson

Treat this as a short conversation you rebuild piece by piece rather than a video you watch once.

  • Start with the formal set: "Good morning.", "Good afternoon.", "Mmm, good evening." and their shortened versions "Morning.", "Afternoon.", "Evening." Say each pair back to back so the shortening becomes a reflex, not a rule you remember.
  • Move to the stranger set: "Hi.", "Hey.", "Hiya." Record yourself on all three and compare the vowel in "Hiya" against your own, since that is the one most learners flatten.
  • Take the three follow up questions, "How are you?", "How's it going?", "How you doing?", and drill them as one block. This is the core of english speaking practice for daily use: you will hear one of these three almost every day.
  • Pair each question with a real response, "Yeah, I'm good thanks.", "Not bad thanks.", "Pretty good thanks." or "Not so good.", so the question and reply live in your mouth as a single unit, not two separate sentences.
  • Once the formal, casual and question and response sets are solid on their own, chain them in order as the host does, from a boss in the morning to a stranger on the street, and repeat the full chain until the pace feels normal rather than fast.
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