hallo

See also: halló, Hallo, allô, and allo

English

Etymology

From Middle English halou, halow, halloo (interjection used to call attention), representing Old English hēlā, ǣlā, ēalā (“O!, alas!, oh!, lo!”), equivalent to hey +‎ lo.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /həˈləʊ/, /hæˈləʊ/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊ

Interjection

hallo

1. Alternative form of hello
2. (dated) A cry of surprise.
   • 1890 February, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “Sherlock Holmes Gives a Demonstration”, in The Sign of Four (Standard Library), London: Spencer Blackett […], →OCLC, page 98:

     It sounds like a sum in the rule of three. The answer should give us the— But hallo! here are the accredited representatives of the law.

Synonyms

• (hello): See Thesaurus:hello
• (cry of surprise): See Thesaurus:wow

Noun

hallo (plural hallos or halloes)

1. The cry "hallo!"
2. A shout of exultation.

Verb

hallo (third-person singular simple present hallos or halloes, present participle halloing, simple past and past participle halloed)

1. (intransitive) To shout, or to call with a loud voice.
2. (transitive) To chase while shouting "hallo!"
3. (transitive) To cry "hallo" (to someone).
4. (transitive) To shout (something).

Conjugation

Conjugation of hallo

infinitive	(to) hallo
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	hallo	halloed
2nd-person singular	hallo, halloest†	halloed, halloedst†
3rd-person singular	hallos, halloes, halloeth†	halloed
plural	hallo
subjunctive	hallo	halloed
imperative	hallo	—
participles	halloing	halloed

^†Archaic or obsolete.

See also

• lo

Anagrams

• holla

Afrikaans

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɦaləu/

• Audio:

  (file)

Interjection

hallo

1. hello

Danish

Etymology

Imperative of Middle High German haln (“to fetch (a ferryman)”); see German hallo.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /halɔ/, [haˈlɔ] or IPA^(key): /halɔː/, [haˈlɔː]

Interjection

hallo

1. hello (a greeting usually used to answer the telephone)
2. An exclamation to get attention.
3. (as a noun, rare) n hello ("Hello!" or an equivalent greeting)

Further reading

• “hallo” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from English hello, halloo, hollo.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɦɑˈloː/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: hal‧lo
• Rhymes: -oː

Interjection

hallo

1. hello (a general greeting used when meeting somebody) [from 19th c.]

Descendants

• Petjo: hallo
• → Indonesian: halo

Estonian

Alternative forms

• halloo

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈhɑlˑo/, [ˈ(h)ɑlˑo]
• Rhymes: -ɑlˑo
• Hyphenation: hal‧lo

Interjection

hallo

1. hello (exclamation to indicate oneself, which usually is used when starting a telephone call)
2. (informal) an exclamation indicating wonder, demand, disapproval

   Ma teen kõike üksi, hallo, mis mul viga on!

   I do everything alone, hello, what's wrong with me!

References

• hallo in Sõnaveeb (Eesti Keele Instituut)
• “hallo”, in [EKSS] Eesti keele seletav sõnaraamat (in Estonian) (online version), Tallinn: Eesti Keele Sihtasutus (Estonian Language Foundation), 2009

German

Etymology

Originally used as a call to the ferryman on the other side of the bank; related to Old High German holā, emphatic imperative of holōn (“to fetch, used especially in hailing a ferryman”), from Proto-West Germanic *holōn (“to fetch”). Also see French holà (“hey! stop!”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈhalo/, /haˈloː/

• Audio:

  (file)

Interjection

hallo

1. hello (a general greeting used when meeting someone)

Derived terms

• aber hallo

Further reading

• “hallo” in Duden online
• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “hello”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
• “hallo” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Interlingua

Interjection

hallo

1. hello (a greeting usually used to answer the telephone or when meeting somebody)

Latin

Noun

hallō

1. dative/ablative singular of hallus

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From German hallo, Hallo.

Interjection

hallo

1. hello (greeting)

References

• “hallo” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From German hallo, Hallo.

Interjection

hallo

1. hello (greeting)

References

• “hallo” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Scottish Gaelic

Etymology

Borrowed from English hello, halloo, hollo.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /haˈɫoː/

Interjection

hallo

1. hello

Spanish

Verb

hallo

1. first-person singular present indicative of hallar

West Frisian

Etymology

From Dutch hallo.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /haˈloː/

Interjection

hallo

1. hello

Further reading

• “hallo”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011