The first word you'll learn in almost any language is "hello." In Spanish, it's simple and friendly.

You can use hola anytime, day or night. But if you want to be more specific, you can greet people based on the time of day.

Buenas noches works for both "good evening" when you're arriving somewhere and "good night" when you're leaving or going to bed.

After saying hello, the next step is to introduce yourself. To ask someone their name, you say:

This literally translates to "How do you call yourself?" It's the most common way to ask for someone's name in an informal setting.

To respond, you have a couple of options. You can use Me llamo... which means "I call myself..." or simply Soy... which means "I am..."

It's polite to ask people how they are doing. The standard, informal way to ask this is:

The most common reply is positive.

To return the question, you can simply add ¿Y tú? (And you?).

Of course, you might not always feel great. Here are a couple of other ways to respond.

In many Spanish-speaking cultures, greetings are an important social ritual. People take a moment to genuinely connect, often with a handshake, a pat on the back, or even a kiss on the cheek between friends and family. A warm greeting sets a friendly tone for any conversation.

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With these simple phrases, you can start a basic conversation with millions of Spanish speakers around the world. It's the first step toward making new connections.