Knowing how to greet people is the foundation of speaking Hebrew.

Native Israelis use a mix of traditional phrases and modern slang in their daily lives.

Many common greetings even come directly from Arabic.

This guide covers the ten most important Hebrew greetings you’ll hear in everyday conversations.

Shalom (hello / peace / goodbye)

The most famous Hebrew greeting is shalom.

It literally translates to “peace”.

You can use it to say hello or goodbye to anyone.

It works perfectly in both highly formal and very casual situations.

Boker tov (good morning)

Boker means morning and tov means good.

You’ll hear this everywhere in Israel before noon.

There’s also a popular reply you might hear from locals.

When someone says boker tov, you can reply with boker or, which means “morning of light”.

Erev tov (good evening)

Erev translates to evening in Hebrew.

You use this greeting when the sun starts to set.

It’s slightly more polite than just saying shalom.

Waiters at restaurants and store clerks will frequently greet you this way at night.

Laila tov (good night)

Just like in English, you say this when you’re parting ways late at night.

You also say it right before going to sleep.

Laila means night in Hebrew.

Ma nishma (how are you?)

This is the most standard way to ask “how are you?” in Hebrew.

It literally translates to “what will be heard?”.

You can use it with friends, family, or people you just met.

It’s casual but completely acceptable in professional settings.

Ahlan (hi / hello)

This is a fantastic example of Arabic influence on modern Hebrew.

Ahlan is originally an Arabic greeting.

Israelis adopted it into everyday Hebrew slang.

It’s used as a very friendly, casual way to say “hi” to someone.

Ma kore (what’s happening?)

Ma kore translates directly to “what is happening?”.

It’s the Hebrew equivalent of asking “what’s up?”.

This is extremely common among young people in Israel.

You’ll hear this almost every time two friends greet each other.

Ma ha’inyanim (how are things?)

This phrase literally translates to “what are the matters?”.

It’s used to ask “how are things?” or “how’s it going?”.

It’s slightly more enthusiastic than ma nishma.

You usually use this when catching up with a friend you haven’t seen in a while.

Yom tov (have a good day)

When you finish a conversation, you can wish the other person a good day.

Yom means day and tov means good.

It’s commonly used as a parting phrase when leaving a shop or ending a phone call.

You can also say yom nifla, which means “have a wonderful day”.

Lehitraot (see you later)

Lehitraot is the standard way to say goodbye in Hebrew.

It literally means “to see each other”.

You use this when parting ways with someone you expect to see again.

In very casual slang, many Israelis also just say “yalla bye” which blends Arabic and English.

Summary table of Hebrew greetings

Here’s a quick reference table of all the greetings covered in this guide.