Phase 1 · Lesson 05 · A0

Spanish Greetings and Goodbyes

Open and close a short encounter in Spanish. Learn the phrases that fit the time of day, the direction of the moment, and when you expect to meet again.

Choose your first greeting View the course
  • 17-minute lesson
  • English guidance
  • Audio + situation practice

What you'll be able to do

Choose one greeting and one goodbye that fit.

By the end, you can open and close a short everyday encounter with a suitable fixed phrase, then respond when another person uses the same routine with you.

TodayHola, three time-of-day greetings, and four practical goodbyes.NextPlease, thank you, excuse me, and other polite formulas come in lesson 6.LaterTú/usted choices, full “How are you?” exchanges, and introductions.

Interactive check

Bring two pronunciation clues with you

Retrieve silent H from lesson 3 and the written accent from lesson 4 before these phrases become speech.

01Lesson 3 clue: how do you begin hola?
02Lesson 4 clue: which spelling correctly marks the stressed I in días?

Show answer key
  1. On the O: O-la — Exactly. H is silent, so hola begins directly on its clear O vowel.
  2. días — Correct. The written accent marks Í as the stressed vowel in días.

Activity 2 · Open the encounter

Start with the moment, then choose the greeting.

A greeting is a small conversational routine: the phrase is already built for you. Hola works throughout the day. The other three phrases acknowledge morning, afternoon, or night without requiring a sentence of your own.

01

Hola

Hello / Hi

Best clueAny time of day

A flexible greeting. It can stand alone or come before a time-of-day greeting.

02

Buenos días

Good morning

Best clueDuring the morning

Use the plural form as your international default. Buen día is also common in parts of the Americas.

03

Buenas tardes

Good afternoon / evening

Best clueDuring the afternoon and early evening

The social moment matters more than a universal clock cutoff, which varies by place and routine.

04

Buenas noches

Good evening / Good night

Best clueAt night

This phrase can open an encounter at night or close one when you leave.

Notice the response pattern

Return the greeting you receive.

At this level, the safest response is often the same routine. If someone saysBuenos días, answer Buenos días. This is social acknowledgment, not a literal report about whether the day is good.

Audio transcript: Buenos días. Buenos días. Hola. Hola. Buenas noches. Buenas noches.

Morning

A Buenos días.

B Buenos días.

Any time

A Hola.

B Hola.

Night

A Buenas noches.

B Buenas noches.

Interactive check

Which phrase opens this encounter?

Use arrival and time of day as your evidence. The feedback explains the social clue, not just the answer.

01You enter a clinic waiting room in the morning. Which greeting fits the moment?
02You see a friend and want a greeting that works at any time of day.
03You arrive at a restaurant at night. What can you say as you enter?

Show answer key
  1. Buenos días — Buenos días fits a morning arrival and acknowledges the people already there.
  2. Hola — Hola is the flexible, all-day greeting. The other two phrases close an encounter.
  3. Buenas noches — Buenas noches works as a greeting when you arrive at night.

Activity 3 · Close the encounter

Let the next meeting shape your goodbye.

The useful question is not “Which translation is perfect?” but “What happens next?” Use adiós for a general close, or choose a phrase that points toward later, tomorrow, or a casual parting.

Audio transcript: Adiós. Hasta luego. Hasta mañana. Chao.

01

Adiós

Goodbye

A general goodbye

A clear choice when you only need to mark that the encounter is ending.

02

Hasta luego

See you later

You expect another encounter

A very common leave-taking routine; it does not require a precise meeting time.

03

Hasta mañana

See you tomorrow

You will meet again tomorrow

The word after hasta names the next expected point of contact.

04

Chao

Bye

A casual goodbye

Common across much of the Spanish-speaking world in relaxed conversation.

Interactive check

What happens after you leave?

Choose the goodbye that best matches the next expected contact or the tone of the parting.

01Class is over, and the group will meet again tomorrow.
02You leave a shop and expect to see the person again, but no exact time is fixed.
03You want a short, casual equivalent of “Bye.”

Show answer key
  1. Hasta mañana — Hasta mañana makes the next expected meeting—tomorrow—part of the farewell.
  2. Hasta luego — Hasta luego is a conventional way to close the exchange while pointing to a later encounter.
  3. Chao — Chao is a common casual goodbye in many Spanish-speaking regions.

Activity 4 · Listening discrimination

Hear the phrase, then recover its situation.

Play each clip before choosing. Listen for the time word or the leave-taking clue, and remember that Buenas noches needs visible context to reveal its job.

Audio 1

Audio transcript: Buenos días.

Audio 2

Audio transcript: Hasta mañana.

Audio 3

Audio transcript: Buenas noches.

Interactive check

Which situation belongs to the phrase?

Replay as often as you need. One answer depends on context rather than sound alone.

01Audio 1: what kind of moment does the phrase usually open?
02Audio 2: when does the speaker expect the next encounter?
03Audio 3: what extra clue tells you whether this is a greeting or a farewell?

Show answer key
  1. A morning encounter — You heard Buenos días, the time-of-day greeting used during the morning.
  2. Tomorrow — You heard Hasta mañana: the farewell names tomorrow as the next point of contact.
  3. Whether the person is arriving or leaving — Buenas noches can do both jobs. Arrival makes it a greeting; departure makes it a farewell.

Common beginner slips

Treat the phrases as routines, not word puzzles.

Choose from the situation, say the phrase as one unit, and leave room for real regional habits.

  1. 01

    Pronouncing the H in hola

    Begin directly on O. Keep the two vowels clear: O-la.

  2. 02

    Using an exact clock cutoff

    Daily schedules vary. Follow the local social moment when people shift from tardes to noches.

  3. 03

    Translating buenas literally

    In a greeting, buenas does not need a separate English word. Learn the whole fixed expression.

  4. 04

    Forgetting the return greeting

    Acknowledge the other person: repeat Hola, Buenos días, or the greeting you received.

Activity 5 · Final role-play

Open and close one complete encounter.

Pick a situation. Say the greeting, imagine the short interaction, then say the goodbye without looking at the model. Open the model only after your first attempt.

Audio transcript: Buenos días. Hasta luego. Hola. Chao. Buenas noches. Hasta mañana.

01Morning bakeryYou arrive, buy bread, and expect to return.

Model: Buenos días. … Hasta luego.

02Afternoon with a friendYou meet casually, chat, and leave.

Model: Hola. … Chao.

03Night classYou arrive at night and will return tomorrow.

Model: Buenas noches. … Hasta mañana.

I can now…

This private checklist submits and stores nothing. Natural alternatives are welcome when they fit the situation.

Three things to keep

Your greeting and goodbye map

  1. Hola works all day; Buenos días, Buenas tardes, and Buenas noches name the social moment.
  2. A return greeting can simply repeat the routine you receive.
  3. Adiós, Hasta luego, Hasta mañana, and Chao close encounters with different forward clues.

Review tomorrow: choose one arrival and one departure in your real day, then name the Spanish phrase you would use.

Sources used for this lesson