Chinese word

招呼

Pronunciation

Pinyinzhāo hū

Meaning

  • noungreeting

Example

他们互相打了个招呼。tā men hù xiāng dǎ le gè zhāo hū

They exchanged a greeting.

Illustration for 招呼 (greeting)

More examples

路上见到熟人，我都会先打个招呼。lù shàng jiàn dào shú rén wǒ dū huì xiān dǎ gè zhāo hū

Whenever I see someone I know on the road, I always say hello first.

Core concept

A brief act that reaches across a social gap to acknowledge someone, whether through words, a call, or a gesture.

Common phrases

  • 打个招呼dǎ gè zhāo hū

    say hello

  • 一句招呼yí jù zhāo hū

    a word of greeting

Similar words

问候wèn hòu: A greeting that expresses care about someone's health or how things have been.
问好wèn hǎo: A brief greeting used to wish someone well when meeting them.

Definition in Chinese

向别人表示问候或表示关照的行为，也可指简短的招呼话语。xiàng bié rén biǎo shì wèn hòu huò biǎo shì guān zhào de xíng wéi yě kě zhǐ jián duǎn de zhāo hū huà yǔ

Word origin

招呼 (zhāohū, "greeting") combines 招 (zhāo, "beckon") with 呼 (hū, "call out"), joining the ideas of drawing someone in and addressing them.

Usage tips

  • Chinese can use the same form for the social act as a noun and for performing that act as a verb, so surrounding grammar helps identify its role.

Other meanings

  • call outverb
  • greetverb

Opposites

Related words

Word lists with this word